Soul Magic
by Bellatrix.Giggles
Summary: Focuses on an inquisitive Harry as he discovers that magic is real and learns about his place in the world. Ultimately, he will have to face off against a reborn Tom Riddle/Voldemort while discovering Ancient Magic that has long protected Hogwarts. This is a repost of a lost/deleted story and I am editing/posting again. Harry/Cedric SLASH. Paternal RL&SB. Supportive MM&SS.
1. Prologue

Note:

 **So, this story randomly disappeared and a reader alerted me to it. I don't know if it was a site glitch or if it was because someone reported it (for what I have no idea). Whatever the case, the only thing that I can do is repost (and hope it doesn't happen again). I'm not really happy about that because you were all so great and really helped me along the way with your reviews and I would go back to them when I was stuck. Writing does not come easy to me and you have no idea how much it meant for that support. And I was** ** _almost_** **to 100,000 views, which just blows my mind because I never expected to get that far when I started. To be honest, I didn't even know that was an option when I started.**

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 **I guess with that said, here is Soul Magic version 2.0. If I am going to repost, then I am going to edit every chapter before I do. It only makes sense since I am a different writer now because of the critiques and learning about what works for me and what doesn't. I can only say thanks in advance for your patience and hope I am back to posting new material shortly once everything is back up.**

 **For any new reader, I just wanted to provide a brief overview so you know what you are getting yourself into:**

 **Pairings:** Harry/Cedric

 **Warnings:** language, character death, violence, adult content, and brief nudity (was it this that got it taken down? Because it was a simple joke that makes it painful if I have to explain it).

 **Summary:** This will start Halloween 1981 and continue from there. I intend to explore an inquisitive Harry as he learns about magic and his role in the wizarding world. I am really drawn to this series because of the rich world that JK created and I wanted to expand upon some of her spells, which, to me at least, seem to involve the soul. The first 10 or so chapters will be a little heavy with the action to get things started, as they are necessary for the direction I want to take this.

Harry and Cedric will be getting together at some point down the road and if you don't like that then don't read. My Harry will be a little more studious and somewhat advanced for his age. My entire premise for this story is what if Harry had asked certain questions or people behaved slightly differently (namely The Dursleys didn't outright abuse him).

 **Author's note:** I hope you enjoy this but understand if you don't. Feel free to point out errors or inconsistencies because I may have missed something important. Feedback is always appreciated and I take the good with the bad and just ask that it is constructive so I can do something about it. I am writing this because I love fanfiction and Harry Potter and have read so many amazing stories that I kind of felt guilty for not contributing anything. I started this in January of 2015 and have 250k words written so updates will come as quickly as I can edit the chapters.

I thank you in advance for your time with reading and reviewing this because it really helps.

 **Disclaimer:** I own nothing in the way of Harry Potter! JK is amazing for giving us this gift and I can't thank her enough. She gave us characters that we all have something in common with.

 **Soul Magic: Prologue**

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It was a quiet Halloween in Godric's Hollow. The late autumn air was crisp and crackling fires were burning away in some of the homes, keeping their occupants cozy and warm. The small and magical village was made up of mostly the same families who had lived there for generations.

Which was exactly the sort of place where James and Lily Potter had wanted to raise their own child. Inside the small cottage that James had preferred over the country estate where he had been raised in, the Potter family had just sat down to eat a simple meal. The young parents were currently enjoying the antics of their child, Harry Potter, who had more spaghetti on his face than in his mouth.

The carefree moment was interrupted when a magical pulse rippled through the air, providing the family's only warning that the wards had fallen. Which could only mean one thing: Pettigrew had betrayed them and he was coming for Harry. The magic of the Fidelius Charm was useless to them now.

James and Lily had always known that they couldn't hide forever with the prophecy saying what it had. This was one fate that they simply could not escape, and it did not matter how hard that they tried to keep Harry safe. They had just hoped they would have had more time to prepare, to live. But that was not to be.

Lily and James shared a last, brief look into each other's eyes. Years of love and trust between them had brought them to this moment and they didn't need to speak to tell the other how they felt. Both knew that this was the end and that this was their goodbye, but it would be different for Harry. They refused to die in vain.

"Go, Lils. I'll give you as much time as I can," James said in a loving but determined expression as he stood resolute between his family and the door.

"Give him hell, James," Lily replied while taking a last look at her beloved husband.

She then turned and immediately began to chant softly under her breath as she ran up the stairs with Harry under her arm. For their plan to work she would need every second in which to cast her spell.

And James knew this, so he immediately started to lay charms and curses on the stairs. He would set as many traps and delays for Voldemort as possible. However, it hadn't taken long for the Dark Lord to dismantle the remaining protective enchantments before blowing the front door clear across the room.

James took a deep breath and faced the man who had come for their death. He had never been more focused in his entire life. James knew he would die tonight, but that didn't matter. He had something more important to fight for than himself: the longer that he delayed the Dark Lord – the greater the chance that Harry would live.

A fierce duel erupted as James began transfiguring furniture into lions and smaller objects into spears for Voldemort to deal with. His mind didn't register half of the spells that erupted from his wand before he had then needed to go on the defensive in the hopes of surviving Voldemort's volley for as long as he could. Sweat was pouring out of him as he did everything that he could think of to prolong this battle.

Eventually, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named cast a curse that James could not dodge or block, and he was thrown backwards into the wall with such force that his neck snapped upon impact. The last thoughts that had flickered through his mind were of Lily and Harry and hoping that he didn't fail them.

Once finished with the elder Potter, Voldemort worked quickly to undo the magic on the stairs before ascending the final steps towards the eliminating the threat that could undo all of his plans. However, he entered the child's nursery just after, and therefore unaware that Lily had succeeded in splitting her soul. His eyes were shining with unholy glee as he looked upon his victims and he wasted no time in disarming the woman that stood with the child in her arms. But Lily didn't need her wand anymore, and she moved to seal the protection she had just given her son.

"Not my Harry. Take me! Take me instead!" she repeated several times with her hands held in front of her in a defensive manner that completed the ritual. She felt when the protection took hold. It was ancient magic, soul magic, and it would protect Harry from the evil man in front of her.

The gift that she had just given her son worked very much like a Horcrux, except that it was the complete opposite. Instead of using murder and hate to split her soul, she had used love and her desire to be a sacrifice. Lily had given up a part of herself to save Harry and it had drained her of her magic, for there was always a price to be paid for using this form of magic.

The safeguard that Lily had just enacted would only be activated if she willingly sacrificed herself in this moment. If Voldemort killed her now, the part of her soul that now resided in Harry would protect him from her killer. Her soul would be sacrificed so that Harry's could live and it would take the Dark Lord's in retribution. When she died, Voldemort would not be able to touch Harry.

This is what James and her had planned so that their son could live.

And she could only smile when the green curse shot from his wand and she knew no more.

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 **Let me know what you think! Again, sorry for those who have been following this for the past year.**

 **Reposted 1/16/2016**


	2. You're A Wizard, Harry

**Author's Note:** Going through the edit/reposting process. It is very hard not knowing what happened, though with the site being down this morning, I wonder if that had something to do with it. If this chapter doesn't properly post today I will try tomorrow (since it already disappeared once after I posted it this morning).

Just a thanks for those who are sticking with this and hello to those who are just joining.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning Harry Potter and JK is so nice to let us play with her creation.**

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Harry woke with a start. Sweat was pooled on his forehead and he had to bite down on his tongue to keep from yelling out; it would be of no use to wake Uncle Vernon at this hour.

Over the years he had learned not to call out from this dream and wake the Dursleys. Most of the time he tried to act as if he didn't live there, to not be a burden on his relatives who had begrudgingly taken him in after his parents' death.

His eyes were wide and his pupils were constricted even in the faint moonlight that cast unknown shadows past the foot of his bed. It was as if the scene he had just witnessed had been real: that a man holding an ornate stick had sent a green and sickly light his way after demanding a pleading woman with flowing red hair to step aside.

"Not my Harry!" she had begged over and over again with her arms held out in front of her, beseeching this man to take her instead.

Harry could still feel that horrible semblance of dread inside of him that the dark chuckle of that man elicited as he sat upright in his bed. It would take several moments for the images of this woman to fade once more into the background.

She had been struck down by a green light that this shadowy man had produced with his wooden stick. Harry could still see her as she lied on the floor, unmoving.

It had caused him grief each and every time and he knew that it would always cause his heart to ache. He had been having this dream for as long as he could remember. And it always ended with the man's crimson eyes moving from the woman on the floor to stare directly at him before he had been bathed in that same green light.

In some ways, it was his first memory, and he felt like he could never forget it even when he was awake because of the scar on his forehead. The scar that always seemed to throb ever so slightly after this particular dream and that he could never quite cover with his hair because that was something different altogether. His hair could not and would not be tamed.

Harry threw off the light bed covers, it being July after all, and went to the bathroom to wash his face in an effort to calm himself. He glanced in the mirror and stared at the faint scar that somewhat reminded him of a lightning bolt. It was indistinct and hardly anyone noticed it, but it always drew his attention. He could never forget what it reminded him of each and every time that he looked at it.

He quietly walked back to his room and sat at the foot of his bed to stare out the window, and he drew his knees to his chest and rested his chin on them. It would be a while before he could face sleep again. Like usual, he had then started to think back over his young life, which was both a blessing and a curse because he had a remarkable memory and few things were ever truly forgotten.

His first memories of the Dursleys were more feeling-based than anything else. He had always felt like a burden to them, forced into their house and disrupting their attempt at having perfect lives. He had never _really_ gotten along with them and over time they had developed a live-and-let-be approach. As long as he didn't become bothersome, they left him to his own devices. His uncle was the one who seemed to mind his presence the most, but tolerated him because of Petunia's insistence. They never treated him badly, however. They were just indifferent to his presence. Where they showered love and praise unto his cousin Dudley, they treated him as a business arrangement; the niceties were observed, but rarely anything of substance was added.

Occasionally, Aunt Petunia would give him a bit of spending money or a birthday present. Harry noticed that whenever she had these bursts of kindness her eyes seemed to be full of remorse. As if she was trying to say that she was sorry for something, but that apology never came.

The best he could figure was that she cared somewhat for him because they were family but resented his presence for some unknown reason. Perhaps something had happened between her and his mother and it was never resolved? He could never really come up with a better explanation than that and he hesitated to ask.

Of course, they had told him that his parents had died when he was quite young and had subsequently been given the few pictures that his aunt had of them. He had since gotten over the initial shock of recognition that his mother was the woman from his dreams, and Harry had almost given up trying to reconcile what that meant. It was a ridiculous thought that his dream could have actually happened, and Harry became convinced that his overactive imagination from reading so much had caused his subconscious to put his feelings of losing out on knowing his parents into dream form. Maybe it was his brain's way of coming to terms with being an orphan? He really had no idea.

Over the years, Harry had become quite introverted. While he quietly excelled in the classroom, he never really offered answers, and when called upon, refrained from drawing unwanted attention by not answering the question to his full capabilities. He became indifferent to human interaction and preferred to spend his time absorbing as much information as he could from the world around him. Books, magazines, the occasional TV documentary, and random newspaper clippings had all offered Harry an escape; he got lost in learning and imagined himself to be anywhere but where he currently was.

It was a habit of his to daydream about what his life would be like when he was older and free to be alone.

He supposed that he would go through school and on to university and end up with a doctorate of some sort, most likely in the sciences. It was a path that would give him the means to provide for himself and, at the same time, sate his curiosity with all there was to know in the world. It was possible he would even discover something!

Little did Harry know that at that exact moment a quill had become active hundreds of miles away that would change his entire life.

* * *

The next few days continued on as they always did. He would help to prepare the meals and do whatever chores that his aunt had wanted done. It usually involved tending to the yard, which Harry enjoyed very much. When he was finished, he was free to spend time at the library.

His birthday arrived with little fanfare; a birthday card with some loose change was slipped under his door in the early hours of the morning. A card to appease the guilt his aunt had for never fully loving him because of some reason he felt he would never know.

The Dursleys had gone into London that day to get Dudley supplies for the coming school year, as Harry's cousin would be going to a private school and needed to get his uniform fitted.

Their absence had left Harry alone the morning of his eleventh birthday. In fact, Harry had just readied his breakfast and was about to sit down when his attention was diverted to the window over the sink.

For an owl was poking on the glass with a letter clutched in its talons. It was the most absurd thing that he had ever seen and he had the gaping expression on his face to prove it.

The bird's continued poking was enough to rouse him from his stupor and he moved to open the window because he couldn't think of anything else to do. The owl proceeded to fly through the opening and dropped a letter next to his plate of food before exiting with a hoot and flying on a branch outside.

Harry was slow to turn around and head back to the table, where he hesitantly reached for the letter that was lying face up, calling to him:

 _Mr. Harry James Potter_

 _The Smallest Bedroom_

 _4 Privet Drive_

 _Little Whinging,_

 _Surrey_

In a daze, he took the letter and opened it and began to read:

 _Dear Mr. Potter,_

 _We are pleased to inform you that you have been selected to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…_

"Bloody hell!" he exclaimed to no one in particular.

Magic, he thought to himself, was not real. It just couldn't exist; for it flew in the face of everything that he knew about the world, of everything he saw. And yet, a small nagging thought in the back of his mind started to become louder and more pronounced….

Magic would certainly have explained some of the odder things that had happened to him over the years. For a moment, he allowed himself to indulge as he considered it in earnest.

His mind went over the unusual events that he had never been able to fully explain. Like how a book that had just seemingly been out of reach had inched closer to his outstretched hand that he had passed off at the time as thinking he had tilted the shelf in such a way that had made the book fall. Or the time that a bag of crisps had gotten stuck in a vending machine and had seemingly wiggled itself free.

But he spent most of his time thinking about how sometimes he could look at a person and just _know_ if they were telling him the truth, which he had always rationalized away later as his ability to read someone's body language and mannerisms.

Of course, Harry would never be able to forget the conversation he had had with a snake in the backyard. But… really… that couldn't have happened. _That_ was just illogical, a definite result of an overactive imagination.

But… and the same time he couldn't help but wonder if it had all been real.

His mindset was slightly different as he returned his attention to the letter and finished reading it through. Once finished, he turned it over and began to read through the list of school supplies. Words like cauldron, spell books, and robes were passed over quickly; however, his eyes widened as he came to the part about a wand.

For years he had been dreaming about a cruel man with a wooden stick that had emitted a sickly green light, very much the opposite of his vibrant emerald eyes. His breathing started to pick up and his heart began to race.

"No," he whispered to himself. "It's not possible. That was just a dream, that man wasn't a wizard, and my parents didn't die because of him. I couldn't be magical. This is not real. This is not happening."

He wasn't even thinking about the implications of whether his aunt knew about any of this, because he couldn't worry about _everything_ right now. There was only so much that he could think about before his brain short-circuited without trying to wonder how the Dursleys fit into all of this. As it was, he was close to the proverbial edge without those thoughts.

In time, his mind drifted back to the letter and he wondered about how he would be able to send his reply before the owl in the tree hooted again.

"You have got to be kidding me," he spoke aloud, commenting on the apparent suggestion to a question he hadn't even spoken.

"Well, I can perform a test," he then reasoned after several moments of deep thought while staring at the owl.

"If I write back and request an in-person meeting with this Deputy Headmistress _and_ the owl takes the letter _and_ someone is able to demonstrate magic _then and only then_ will I take all of this seriously."

He thought it was quite reasonable for the situation he had somehow managed to find himself in so early in the morning. Then he retrieved a sheet of paper and a pen and wrote out a quick response to start his experiment.

 _Dear Deputy Headmistress,_

 _Please forgive my hesitancy but I find all of this to be quite out of the ordinary. I have never heard of magic being real or know nothing about being a wizard. Would it be possible to arrange for a meeting in-person to discuss this further? I am afraid that I would need some proof that this wasn't an elaborate hoax that used a well-trained owl. I would prefer this to be a private meeting and not in the presence of my guardians, the Dursleys, and I am open to suggestions that would fit both of our schedules._

 _Sincerely and respectfully,_

 _Harry James Potter_

He folded the letter and paused. How was he supposed to address a letter that an owl was supposed to deliver? For that matter, how would he attach the letter and how would the owl carry it? He went over to the window and held his letter at his side. He decided to perform another test. However, before beginning he pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes while he considered just how crazy he felt about speaking to an owl as if it would understand him.

"I need this letter delivered to the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…. please?" He asked holding the letter aloft.

Harry was then left with a dumb-founded look on his face as the owl gave a hoot and flew into the room again. Somehow, his letter just _attached_ itself to the owl's leg before it exited the kitchen with a swooshing sound and disappeared from view.

He returned to his breakfast but all he could do was push his food from one side of the plate to the other while snorting in disbelief from time to time. Not even an hour later, the doorbell rang. Harry dropped his fork and a feeling of dread instantly settled itself in the pit of his stomach. This couldn't be because of his letter; it was just too soon to get a response. And a response meant that this could all be real, and that terrified him.

He approached the front door with the complete opposite of alacrity and opened it slowly to reveal a woman wearing what looked to be a cloak.

She was an older woman with the most severe-looking bun that he had ever seen, not a strand of hair was out of place.

Her features were stern and her thin mouth was in a very neutral position. Although, it was her eyes that made Harry feel more comfortable. He could swear that he could detect a sense of anticipation and longing in them, with a touch of … pride? But that didn't make any sense. It wasn't like he knew her.

"Mr. Potter," she began as the silence was interrupted, "My name is Professor McGonagall and I am the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I received your reply and came at once to answer your questions. May I come in?" She asked in a voice that was firm but again was laced with a hint of familiarity.

"Of course, P-professor, though I must admit I am a little confused about this whole thing."

Harry showed her into the living room where he sat on the couch as she took to the armchair that Vernon usually parked himself in. She removed her cloak to reveal a dark, almost black, green robe. Wasn't she hot wearing all of that? It didn't matter; there were other things to focus on.

"Magic," he began, "it just can't be real; it's not possible."

At this, the professor simply removed a wooden stick from her sleeve and, instantly Harry was on his feet. Fear began to show on his face, his thoughts on how another wooden stick had caused him so much grief. McGonagall noticed this at once and hesitated with her intended demonstration of transfiguring the coffee table into a Labrador Retriever.

"Harry?" she said slowly and the use of his first name was enough to direct his attention to her immediately softening features.

"What's wrong? I was taking out this _wand_ to provide a demonstration of magic and you look as if I am about to cause you pain…" she trailed off not knowing what else to say.

"P-p-professor, I am afraid that _is_ my reaction to seeing your wooden stick - no, wand," he paused, uncertain as to how to begin explaining why it made him so afraid.

He had a sickening feeling that he was about to get information that his dream may not have been a dream after all.

"It's just, for as long as I can remember, I have had this dream that a woman with red hair - who I have since come to know as my mother from pictures my aunt gave me - was pleading with this man who wore a cloak similar to yours…"

Harry instantly picked up on the shock that crossed her face, shock that meant he had hit a nerve and that his dream was becoming more and more real with every passing second.

"He had a _wand_ very much like yours, though it was a different color and shape, and he made this green light come from it. This green light hit my mother and made her fall to the ground. He then turned to me and sent the same sickly glow my way, and this is where I always wake up. That wasn't a dream, was it?"

His eyes had been pleading with her to deny it and to come up with some other explanation.

But when the tears began to form in her eyes, Harry knew that it had happened and he placed his hands on his stomach as a cold sweat broke out on his face.

"Harry…." she started before she found that she needed to pause to get her own emotions under control.

She moved over to the couch and looked at his face, focusing on his eyes that were struggling to come to terms with having actually witnessed his mother's death. McGonagall couldn't even imagine what that had to feel like, to have seen the man who had murdered her.

"I can't believe that you remember that night." She didn't know what else to say.

Never in her wildest dreams had she expected her first conversation with Harry to turn out this way. But she had to say something to the boy in the state that he was in.

"I admit that I don't know what to say, I was good friends with your parents, and they were some of the best students I had ever taught. I was even there at your birth."

Tears were now freely falling from her eyes as she went to touch Harry on the shoulder as he stared forward in complete shock. His life had been turned upside down and his mind was reeling, focusing on nothing and everything at the same time.

She continued, "I will do my best to answer any questions you have."

She didn't know what to do or say and just rubbed small circles into Harry's back. She couldn't get over the fact that Harry remembered the night that Voldemort had killed his parents - that he had remembered the night that made him the Boy Who Lived. She had come here to prove that Magic was real, but she never would have though that _this_ was the proof that she would give; confirming that he had witnessed that unspeakable horror was something that she couldn't wrap her mind around.

They continued sitting there for some time before Harry had come out of his daze and had asked to hear everything.

She told him the story about He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, whom he had flat-out refused to call by that silly moniker, and the growing war and his parent's involvement in something called the Order of The Phoenix. He felt some small measure of relief at knowing the name of his parents' killer. She mentioned how he was quite well-known as the Boy Who Lived for defeating Voldemort, which he didn't like at all. He didn't understand why he was famous for something that he didn't remember or likely hadn't even done.

But most of all, he didn't like the idea of being famous for something that had cost him his family.

McGonagall had then tried to get Harry's mind off of things as she talked about Hogwarts and the classes that he would take. There was talk of the four houses, though she didn't get into any of the politics surrounding them, and painted a picture of the grounds that everyone agreed had a certain enchanting quality.

During her description, she couldn't help but notice how Harry was dealing with everything. She watched him put aside thoughts of his parents as he focused on this new world that was becoming more and more real to him, the world that he was about to join.

It impressed her that he was able to ask a question here or there for clarification, but he mostly just absorbed everything that she was telling him.

Finally, she braved the topic about the Dursleys and inquired about living with them. Specifically, she wanted to make sure that there hadn't been any problems.

"No, there are not really _any_ problems. They leave me alone and I leave them alone. I may not get bathed with love but I don't get abused either. I prefer it, actually, to be alone to think and read. It is soothing sometimes to not have to deal with anyone's expectations."

Expectations it seemed he would now have to deal with as the Boy Who Lived.

It worried her that he had seemed to shy away from human interaction, and had promised herself that she would watch over him and be there for him. It was the least she could do for Lily and James.

On that note, she described Diagon Alley and how he could go about getting his supplies for school and even offered to go with him next weekend. He had then asked about money and how he would pay for all of this and she in turn told him about Gringotts and that was where his parents had left him money and family heirlooms.

That had gotten his attention and his demeanor that had been slowly returning from shock, changed instantly to one longing to get in touch with where he had come from.

"Thank you, Professor. I would be grateful if you accompanied me."

"It would be my sincere pleasure, Harry," she had replied with a warmth that was unknown to many.

Minerva had wondered why his aunt had never said anything but didn't think now was the time to get into that. However, she did have to leave soon and wanted to make sure that he would be all right until she saw him next.

"Honestly Professor, I think I will be fine. I think a part of me always knew something didn't add up. I'm sure there is more, but I'm grateful to know what I have learned – even if it is hard. She must have really loved me."

"They _both_ really loved you, Harry, there was never any doubt about that. You meant everything to them." She wanted to emphasize this point. He deserved to know.

"Thank you for everything, Professor. I have a lot to think about and don't think I could honestly process anything else at this moment."

He followed with a genuine smile and his green eyes shown with a sincere sense of thankfulness. He told her not to worry about leaving him and that he looked forward to next weekend.

As he led her out, he found himself swept up in a rare hug from the Transfiguration Professor.

By the time she left, it was in the middle of the afternoon and the Dursleys would be arriving shortly. Harry had agreed to meet her the following Saturday in the park down the street and then they would go to Diagon Alley.

He didn't even have it in him to be surprised as she turned and disappeared on the spot. Their conversation had certainly given him enough to think about in the next week and headed upstairs just as the door opened and the Dursleys returned. He thought a lot about everything that night, but managed to fall into a peaceful sleep – he was too spent to dream.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think and thanks for reading!**

 **Reposted 1/16/2015**


	3. Gringotts

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading; especially if this is the second time because of the reposting.

Second, I tried to imagine what I would have done in James and Lily's shoes while still being somewhat canon. If they had been aware of the prophecy, then I would have bet that they would have prepared for Harry's future, especially considering James and Lily's plan to protect him (which I will address later).

I also tried to think what I would have done in Harry's position. Let me know what you think!

Posted: 1/18/2016

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything!**

* * *

The next week went by faster than Harry had expected it to, which was strange considering all of the shocking facts that he had just learned. However, he found himself more at peace because at least he didn't have to wonder anymore about that dream or any of the strange occurrences in his life. Though the truth of what had happened was difficult sometimes, he was grateful that he had some semblance of closure.

An unknown weight had been lifted from him and even though his heart now knew this horrible truth, his whole being felt lighter. Harry couldn't deny the truth of something and, to him, it made facing the world easier. He liked knowing what was out there and what he was up against.

So his parents had been murdered and for some unknown reason he survived. The only thing that mattered to him was that Voldemort was gone and his parents… his parents had died trying to protect him. Of course he would have preferred if they hadn't died at all, but their sacrifice had left a tangible mark on him, one that Harry would always treasure – because he had been so loved.

It helped that it was business as usual in the Dursley household. Though he was mildly surprised that he was able to be normal around Petunia given that she had left out _a few_ important details he thought he _should_ have known. He supposed that her treatment of him was at least consistent; perhaps the resentment she had had for her sister was now guilt considering what had happened and she just didn't know how to act.

People were complicated like that. How do you apologize for something that you just want to put as far from your mind as possible?

He was more worried about how he was going to broach the subject that he would be leaving to attend Hogwarts in less than a month. Knowing what he knew about how magic had changed her relationship with her sister, he wondered how it would change theirs. Though, it would be hard to classify their live-and-let-be policy as a relationship. Ultimately, he decided that he would just deal with it after going and getting his school supplies.

Speaking of school supplies and his upcoming shopping trip, he wondered whether it would be prudent to come up with a list of questions to ask McGonagall. After the shock of last week's life-changing understandings wore off, he realized that he had mostly just listened to her and had not really participated in their discussion aside from the few questions he had asked that mostly were related to terms he didn't understand or couldn't comprehend. Like Quidditch or flying on a broom or going to a school to learn how to be a wizard. A wizard! That was getting a little easier to come to terms with. He could perform magic, and all the odd occurrences that he had rationalized away in the past were now proof that he was magical.

But with knowing about magic, he began to wonder if it had limits. Surely, there had to be underlying rules to guide it; _everything_ has fundamental principles that says what is possible. Just because they haven't been discovered yet doesn't mean they aren't there. He couldn't wait to see what see just what they were or what magic was fully capable of. But he was getting ahead of himself, he had to start at the beginning and learn the basics, and that meant starting with what he didn't know.

Sitting in his small wooden desk, he took out a piece of paper and a pen. The desk had originally been Dudley's before he had demanded something better and bigger; for what though Harry wasn't sure – he didn't even know if Dudley could read.

It took him a moment of sitting in silence, gathering his thoughts, before he began to write down what would be the foundation for his questions. The list of school supplies was laid out next to him to function both as a reference and as an inspiration for things that he wanted clarified.

* _Pet to bring? Says owl, toad, or cat – nothing else? Snake? Would be nice to have something to speak with. Should confirm you can speak with a snake._

* _Is it normal to talk to snakes?_ _Can witches or wizards talk with other animals?_

 _* Four houses at Hogwarts? How are we sorted into a house?_

 _* Did my parents have any friends that are alive now? Any other children that I might have known while younger?_

 _* Who brought me here? How did Petunia react? Does Vernon know about magic?_

 _* Money? Gold? What is Gringotts? Vault?_

 _* Dragon hide gloves? Dragons?!?_

 _* Is it possible to bring a backup wand? Do they break? Can muggles use a wand?_

 _* Broomsticks? We can fly! Do I have to be a second year to buy one?_

 _* Pointed black hat, really? Do they help with magic?_

* _Books? Can we bring more than what is on the list? Last name of author and subject they write about are similar, coincidence?_

 _* Can Muggles see magic? What makes us magical?_

 _* Potions, is that like chemistry? Yay!_

 _* How far behind will I be? Is there a difference between those raised in the magical world and those like me?_

 _* Glasses, any way to magically fix eye site?_

 _* Wizard health in general - would that explain why I hardly get sick? What are the other differences between wizards and 'muggles'?_

* _Wizard suitcases - how will I carry all of these? Can we have things shipped to Hogwarts?_

He put down the pen and sat upright to stretch his neck while thinking if there was anything that he had forgotten or was still curious about. It was unlikely that he had been able to think of everything but he was reasonably satisfied with what he had come up with. This list would help prepare him for his entry into a new world.

For Harry wanted to make up for lost time of not being aware of this sooner and vowed to apply himself in this endeavor. No more would he be worried about vastly outperforming his cousin or the other students because of how it could change his home life or how other kids would look at him. He wanted to see what he could really do when he put one-hundred percent into something. It would be his way of honoring his parent's sacrifice as best he could, and a small part of him wanted to make them proud, wherever they were.

* * *

It was difficult getting to sleep the night before meeting Professor McGonagall again; his mind was racing just thinking about the excitement that tomorrow would bring. In just about every way he could think of he was starting a different life, and tomorrow was his initiation of sorts with the magical world. Understandably, his nerves were slightly on edge.

'But this is the sort of adventure that I've had always wanted,' he kept telling himself.

This would be something to bring him closer to his parents and do something that they had done. Hogwarts was where his parents had met and where they had studied and Harry looked at going there as if he was going home, in a way.

Before, he had recognized that he was slightly turning away from human interaction in favor of the quiet solace that books provided. But now, now he felt something stirring in his heart, his very soul, which was slowly opening his eyes to other opportunities around him. It was oddly comforting being awakened to things outside of what he was used to.

Just the thought that he was going to get to know more about his parents, where he came from, and a part of who he was, was starting to make him slightly giddy. He knew that genetics and inherited traits were important for providing a foundation for what one would be become, but he fervently believed that your surrounding environment and experiences and sheer will were also just as important, if not more so in some situations.

Harry didn't really believe in the concept of fate because he reasoned that everyone had choices that they could and would make which would dictate their life and whom they would become. One may get dealt a certain hand, but it was up to that person to do with it as they saw fit.

It was due to these and others thoughts swirling through his head that sleep eluded him until the early hours of the morning.

Upon waking on Saturday and heading down to the kitchen, he discovered that the Dursleys had once again gone into London to pickup Dudley's now-ready uniform. Apparently, last weekend had been the fitting and now all of his custom-made outfits were ready.

Their unexplained absence was certainly a boon, as it would make it easier for him to spend the day with McGonagall. However, they were used to him spending most of the day at the library - he just wondered how he would explain all of his purchases when he came home. Perhaps that would be his opening to telling them about Hogwarts. He could at least point out that he didn't need help with his school shopping or anything else, and would just need a ride to the train station on the first of September. That wouldn't be too much of a burden; it was very reasonable in fact.

He ate quickly and changed into some of the nicer clothes that he had - those reserved for special occasions where the Dursleys wanted to impress more than usual. And he agreed that first impressions were important, after all.

Professor McGonagall was already sitting on a bench when he arrived, that bun just as severe as ever - though her facial expression was remarkably warmer upon seeing him for the second time. Her eyes had hints of nervousness and worry, centered on how he was doing no doubt, but also of relief and anticipation.

"Good Morning, Harry. How is everything today?" She figured she would keep the conversation light, as she would have the entire day to gauge how he was handling everything.

"Hello, Professor. I am well. The past week went faster than I thought it would. I am very excited to get everything today - and I brought a list of questions," he said while taking said list out of his pocket and showing her.

He paused for a second before adding, "How are you today? I can't thank you enough for joining me - I wouldn't even know where to start. How do the other muggle-borns do it? Does someone take them? Do you?" He was getting on a role and Minerva thought it best to calm his rapid-fire questioning as soon as possible.

"Easy Harry," she teased. "We have all day to get everything and answer your questions. Though, when we are outside of school, Minerva will do just fine."

She moved to stand in front of him. His green eyes were bright and ready for the day ahead.

"I am doing well. Though, I only go to Diagon Alley a few times a year. I do take the other muggle-borns, though not individually. Next weekend the majority of us will meet and go as a group. I will be meeting with their parents as well. It gives them some time to ask questions and feel more comfortable letting their children enter a world they didn't even know existed."

Harry nodded his head in agreement, "That makes sense."

He paused to look around the park while thinking about how they were going to get there.

"How are we getting to _Diagon_ Alley," he remarked while slowly emphasizing their destination to make sure that he was saying it correctly.

"Are we going to disappear like you did yesterday? What is that called by the way?"

Minerva looked at the expectant expression on his face.

"I had planned on taking something called the Knight Bus - a magical bus for the stranded witch or wizard, which is signaled by waving your wand in the air."

While she was talking Harry noticed that she had a contemplative look on her face, perhaps in part due to his partially dejected countenance at hearing about taking a bus. It wasn't ever day you got to just 'teleport'. No matter how magical a bus could be, it was still just a bus.

McGonagall had quickly learned that there was no book to go by when dealing with the young Potter and decided to suggest something that was very out of character for her. Something that James would have appreciated.

"Harry, what I did last week by 'disappearing' was called apparating. It requires a license and will be taught in 6th year at Hogwarts. It takes a fair amount of concentration mind you and most witches or wizards simply prefer using the floo - that is traveling through the fire place -"

Harry's eyes widened at that.

"- because sometimes a person could leave a leg or an arm behind-"

Now Harry's eyes were on the verge of bugging out of his head.

"-which is called splinching."

Minerva had noticed Harry's slightly amusing facial expressions showcasing the various stages of shock and alarm and countered, "There is no need to worry, Harry. We have a team of people at The Ministry of Magic, our government, whose sole purpose is to reverse splinching. And I will say it generally occurs when people have had a little too much fire whiskey - it is a very safe thing if you apply yourself, otherwise we wouldn't teach it."

Harry visibly calmed at that, "so you can only apparate yourself I take it? It would have been cool to experience."

"No, you can apparate someone else with you. It is called side-along apparation… I don't normally do this, but I was going to suggest that we _could_ apparate there, if you wanted. It is a suggestion that I think your father would find amusing."

Harry perked up instantly at that. He didn't think he could say no to something that a week ago he didn't think existed in this world. And the bit about his dad just sealed his fate. He wouldn't trust just anyone, but when he looked in her eyes, he just _knew_ that he could trust her.

"All right," he announced. "What do I have to do?"

McGonagall gave him an approving look. She was touched that he would trust her - not that he needed to worry as she was quite in control of her magic. She supposed it was the James in him that was always up for an adventure, and she hoped he had that part of Lily in him that wouldn't make him similarly reckless.

"All you have to do is hold onto my hand, though I warn you it will be a tad uncomfortable at first. Just remember to keep your feet steady. The landing can be quite unexpected your first time."

Harry timidly held out his hand and grabbed hers. He was aware that he was taking a bit of a leap, but one he thought was reasonable and appropriate. Here was someone that had known his parents and had given a fair bit of her time in making his transition to a new world easier, and he would honor that. Sometimes he figured the best approach was to jump right in and face something head on.

"Ready, Harry?" Minerva asked as she noticed Harry had finished readying himself, his stance suggesting that he was preparing for the unknown.

"Let's do this," Harry stated while taking a deep breath and hoping that he wasn't going to regret deciding to jump right in the deep end.

The park they had met in at the end of Privet Drive was empty this early in the morning and as Minerva turned holding Harry's hand, they apparated to Diagon Alley.

One minute, Harry had been standing in a familiar setting and the next thing he knew his very breath had been forced out of him and he didn't know which end was up and which was down. He felt like his body had been squeezed through a tube and as the breath returned to his lungs, his feet seemed to slam on the ground and it took every ounce of his willpower not to rely on McGonagall's hand to remain upright.

When he opened his eyes to take in his new surroundings, he was blown away by what he saw. There was a cobblestone street lined with the most unique and colorful shops he had ever seen. All of the structures were aged, but not in a bad way. There was an otherworldly charm to them. Little did he know that some of the buildings were actually held together by certain charms that had to be recast every now and again.

Speaking of the structures, he thought, 'here was proof that magic had to have been real,' because he didn't understand how certain add-ons were supported. Most were crooked and he wondered whether there were wizarding engineers or if someone just needed to point their wand at something and command it to be sturdy.

That was the other thing he felt: magic. There was this familiar warmth in the air that resonated with him. He felt it under his skin and it radiated all over his body in a faint hum. He could practically taste it in the air.

Minerva noticed that his gaze was trying to take in all of the sights and sounds and smiled to herself as she let him savor in this moment, thinking back to her first memory of this wondrous place. Finally, she led him towards a building made of white marble with columns that looked to be one strong gust of wind away from collapsing on itself. If the other shops looked like they had been around for a while, Gringotts looked positively ancient by comparison.

"This is Gringotts, Harry, and where you will get your money, or _gold_ , to make all of your purchases not only today but in the future. Now, it is important to know that Gringotts is run by goblins, so it would be best not to act uncomfortable and be as direct as possible with them. They appreciate getting down to business and hold little stock in unnecessary conversation."

Harry had been preparing himself to be shocked today and did his best not to show it. If dragons existed, it wasn't a stretch to include goblins in that mix. Thinking about what he knew of banks in the muggle world, he was beginning to wonder just how he would be able to get money out, he didn't exactly have a debit card or anything.

"Professor, I mean, Minerva, how will I get my money or gold out? How will they know I have an account or I am who I say that I am? I don't have any identification."

McGonagall had stopped being surprised by the very reasonable questions that Harry tended to ask.

"The goblins will prick your finger and use a drop of blood to identify you. Blood can never be reproduced or faked because it has your magical signature laced within it. Your blood will then show the goblins the vaults that you can claim."

Harry found that reasonable, if not a bit antiquated, but the more he thought about it he realized it was a great security measure. Also, here was something magic both could and couldn't do: your magic could always identify you and could never be faked. He just hoped the prick didn't hurt too badly.

She quickly continued, "Just know that Gringotts is one of the only places where it is legal to use blood – a wizard or witches' blood is very special because of the power it holds – and it is something that shouldn't be taken lightly."

He reckoned he could see the reasoning behind it and filed this information away for later along with his earlier musings.

However, he did notice something interesting she had said. "Vaults - why would there be more than one?"

"Most people can only claim just one as there is only one that belongs to the family - but from what I knew about your father, Potters did things a little differently. Each child would have their own account supported from the main family vault and this would get them through school and help start a life."

That seemed to answer Harry's question and then some, and they finished their discussion just as they entered through the doors. Harry tried his best not to stare. He really did. But he couldn't help sneaking a few glances to the sides as they walked down the aisle.

Goblins: here was another species besides humans that were talking to one another. Talking! This was historic in his mind because here, right in front of him, was a race clearly just as intelligent as humans. What was their DNA like? How distantly related were they: more similar or less similar to humans than chimpanzees? Harry had become quite interested in Genetics since he had learned about it in school and couldn't help but think about the implications of another intelligent race and how they fit in within evolutionary theory. Was magic a genetic trait?

Goblins were short - perhaps reaching about 1.3 - 1.5 meters in height would be considered tall. They had very pointy ears and very sharp teeth and their skin looked a bit leathery. Some even carried blades at their hips with a colorful array of jewels adorning their hilt.

In that moment he decided to never piss off a goblin and to be as respectful as possible towards them. He was sure those swords were sharp and had no wish to find himself at the wrong end of one.

They approached a teller and Minerva nudged him lightly on the shoulder and gave him an expectant look when the goblin called out, "Next."

"Good Morning, Sir -"

The goblin nearly dropped his quill and his head snapped up to stare at the wizard, his black eyes trying to take in everything about the green-eyed anomaly that had just showed him more respect than he had ever received from a wizard before.

Harry noticed the reaction the goblin had and looked at Minerva who wore a slightly shocked, but not terribly so, expression and nodded at him to continue.

"- forgive me if I said something offensive, I am new to all of this and understand I have some vaults to claim and would like to do so, please."

By this point all of the other goblins in the room were staring at Harry with opened mouths. Minerva was just shaking her head with a small smirk. She had a feeling Harry was going to surprise many in their world and was kicking herself for not anticipating that Harry would likely behave quite differently than most.

The goblin teller regained his composure but was considerably more approachable than before and straightened his quill and nodded at the boy.

"Of course, young wizard - I will have someone take you to a private room for your inheritance test which will allow you to access any and all vaults that you have a claim for. Is there anything else that you need?

Harry smiled back at the goblin and shook his head.

"Thank you very much, sir. I think that is everything," He looked up to Minerva who nodded. Harry figured he would ask her what he had done later.

"Have a good rest of the day," he added.

Another goblin appeared to the right of the teller and walked up to the pair. This goblin was shorter. He had brown wisps of hair on his head – 'perhaps he was younger,' Harry thought.

"Follow me, please," the goblin stated as he directed them quickly out of the busy chamber and into a narrow hallway just as ancient looking as everything else.

They were led into a very comfortable room with ornate oak chairs that had gold trim. Gold seemed to be a recurring theme around this place. Everything Harry saw seemed to have a lining of gold around it or made of it entirely. He was fairly certain those doorknobs had been one-hundred percent gold. He would be shocked if they weren't.

"My name is Sharptooth," The young goblin spoke as he sat behind his desk. "I understand you want to claim some vaults with an inheritance test?"

Harry took his seat next to an already seated Minerva at the goblin's request.

"Yes, sir - I understand that I may have several vaults. My name is Harry Potter."

The goblin's eyes bulged ever so slightly but otherwise he was in control of his features. Sharptooth was a relatively young goblin at seventy years of age and was counted as somewhat of a liberal among his clan. He didn't think all wizards were bad and this young boy only seemed to reinforce his belief. Little did he know just how interesting of a morning he was about to have.

"Of course, Mr. Potter. Give me a moment."

Sharptooth disappeared behind his mahogany desk and returned with a very old looking piece of paper that would have fit in some of the scrolls he had seen on a school trip. He imagined the Egyptians used to write on something very similar. It was called papyrus or something if his memory served him correctly. The goblin then placed a small dagger peppered with beautiful small, red stones - rubies or garnets perhaps - next to the ancient paper. Harry's eyes noticed just how sharp the point of the small blade was.

Harry suddenly thought a prick on his finger could mean something different in the magical world - it seemed a slightly excessive way to get a drop of blood. Wouldn't a little needle be more appropriate?

"Mr. Potter, if you will give me your right index finger, I will prick it and allow a drop of blood to fall on this parchment. The blade is tied to the inherent magic of this bank and our vaults. It will list any and all vaults that your blood can claim as belonging to you."

The goblin seemed to pick up on the boy's reluctance that showed in his eyes since the dagger had come out.

"Do not fear, young wizard - the dagger is charmed to heal the cut instantly and feels like a little prick."

Harry steeled himself and placed his arm on the table and held his hand with his palm facing upwards over the parchment.

He took a calming and relaxing breath before nodding, "I'm ready, Sharptooth."

The goblin was suddenly holding the dagger and moved very quickly to prick Harry's finger and a second later it was over.

'That wasn't so bad', Harry thought to himself.

He stared at the drop of blood glistening on the dagger's tip and watched it fall to the parchment, where it was instantly absorbed. A faint, golden glow illuminated all of their faces and they watched words appear in a very fine script that listed which vaults Harry could claim as well as some of their contents.

 ** _HARRY JAMES POTTER_**

 ** _HEIR – ANCIENT AND MOST NOBLE HOUSE OF POTTER_**

 _POTTER FAMILY VAULT_ _: Books, jewelry, portraits, and assorted heirlooms._

 _GOLD:_

 _1,434,789 galleons_

 _10 sickles_

 _7 knuts_

 _HJP TRUST VAULT_ _: Letter x 3, enchanted cloak, enchanted parchment_

 _GOLD:_

 _55,000 galleons_

 ** _HEIR – ANCIENT AND MOST NOBLE HOUSE OF BLACK_**

 _BLACK FAMILY VAULT_ _:-_

 _Books, jewelry, portraits, and assorted heirlooms._

 _GOLD:_

 _334,789 galleons_

 _8 sickles_

 _10 knuts_

 _SIRIUS BLACK VAULT_ _:_

 _GOLD:_

 _74,789 galleons_

 _5 sickles_

 _6 knuts_

Harry's eyes widened and McGonagall gave a small gasp. Harry turned to her and asked her what all of this meant.

"Minerva, what does Ancient and Most Noble mean? Who are the Blacks? What is a galleon, a sickle? Who is Sirius Black?" Harry felt overwhelmed in this moment. There was too much to process. And all of this was his? That was a lot of gold, right?

Sharptooth decided to intervene because the woman looked very unsure of where to even begin and he expected it had something to do with the House of Black vaults, which the goblin found _very_ interesting. For he was dealing with a moderately wealthy wizard that represented two ancient accounts, not to mention two inherited seats on the Wizengamot.

"Young wizard, if I may?" He started, pulling Harry's attention away from Minerva.

Harry nodded and Sharptooth continued.

"Ancient and Most Noble is a title for those whose families helped to found The Ministry of Magic, do you know about that?"

Harry nodded again. "I know of it, sir."

The goblin continued. "They hold seats on the legislative body - that are inherited like The House of Lords in the muggle world - that helps to shape policy and govern the lives of witches and wizards… and other magical 'creatures.'" he added rather disdainfully, but now was not the time to get into it.

Harry noticed the pained look on the goblin's face and had a sneaking suspicion that the concept of minorities and the oppression of others was something that was present in this world as well.

"When you come of age, you can take your place and vote for the Potter and Black seats."

The goblin finished and paused briefly to take a breath and noticed that Minerva had calmed somewhat from her shock and decided it was best to leave the Black vaults for her to explain the importance of. He would merely explain how the inheritance had occurred, but nothing more. The parchment that had the blood deposited on it was linked to the banks ledger in front of him and had noted how certain transactions had come to pass.

"I will let Minerva explain The House of Black to you, but Sirius Black was your Godfather and listed you as his sole heir. Since he was the heir of the Blacks, it has now passed to you."

Sharptooth was careful not to mention death or incarceration, and it was something that both Minerva and Harry picked up on.

He let that statement sink in before continuing. It seemed the boy hadn't known anything about Sirius and he felt Minerva had a bit of a lengthy and difficult discussion ahead of her.

"A galleon, on the other hand is part of our currency. Twenty-nine knuts are worth one sickle and seventeen sickles are worth a single galleon."

"And how much is a galleon worth, sir?" Harry would focus on the money because he sensed the presence of this House of Black business was something that had a difficult and painful explanation if he was reading Minerva's startled expression correctly.

"One Galleon is equivalent to 25 muggle pounds."

Harry's jaw dropped; that would make him a very wealthy person by his standards and he was beginning to feel as if it was one thing after another. While he was glad to know that he had his education paid for, it was a bit disconcerting to come to terms with being a millionaire, several times over, in fact. He didn't even know how he would spend all of that money – and there were still jewels in his vaults to consider.

He leaned forward to put his head facing down on his arms, which were folded on the desk and closed his eyes.

"Is it normal for people to have this much money," he intoned blandly, not able to put any emotion into his voice.

"No, Mr. Potter, it is not that common. You are considered one of the wealthier wizards. The Potters were known to make good investments and did not live lavishly. They believed in protecting their wealth for future generations. They did do things a little differently: all Potter children have 5,000 galleons deposited every year on their birth until the age of seventeen. After that, the deposits stop and they are expected to make the most of it. Only the ones that spent it unwisely would suffer and the family wealth would still be protected. The smarter Potters were able to re-invest and accrued their own wealth."

"Of course." As if that explained everything.

And he still had no idea who this Sirius Black was and didn't really want to know how he had died or whatever wasn't being said, because otherwise he would have been sent to live with him. Wasn't that what godparents were for? To take care of the child if something happened to the parents? Were there others that could have taken care of him? He couldn't help but think, 'what happened to them?'

However, he did think it was a reasonable, if a bit excessive, approach for giving children that much money. Harry did concede that it would protect the family wealth while giving the child an incentive to make it on his or her own. It was up to the child to make the most of what they had - which he thought was a great policy.

"Harry, are you alright?" Minerva had suspected that the Potters were wealthy but never expected them to be _that_ wealthy. It wasn't on par with The Malfoy's alleged worth but it was definitively within the top echelon of British Magical Society. Besides, The Malfoy's couldn't compete with being an Ancient and Most Noble House; they had emigrated from France in the early 1800s.

She had been completely flabbergasted by this Black situation, and did not look forward to that discussion; She had hoped it could have been had when Harry was older. She took a few second to pinch the bridge of her nose to calm herself; it would do no good for her to loose control of her emotions. Harry needed someone to be there for him right now.

"It is just a lot to take in, I don't know how many more surprises I can deal with and I feel like whoever this Sirius Black is will push me over the edge, judging by the hesitancy you both seem to have with discussing it. I don't think I can deal with it right now anyway."

He took a moment to collect himself. "Can we deal with it later, perhaps?"

"Of course, Harry" She moved to rub small circles on his back as she addressed the Goblin.

"Sharptooth, can we be shown to his trust vault to remove funds for his school supplies? Though before we go I feel I should ask an important question: who is responsible for managing his accounts?"

Harry lifted his head at that notion about managing his accounts. He didn't exactly feel up to this discussion but he was here and could hopefully get it taken care of today, if necessary. He didn't want to waste time with an unnecessary trip to come back to the bank.

"These accounts have been unmanaged for the last decade, as we didn't have any direction. I'm sorry to say that the account managers were reassigned. They have only been accruing the standard interest rate."

Harry had always managed his small allowance to buy him books and had even been saving some of his money from mowing the neighbors' lawns. He felt it prudent to continue his family's style of soundly handling money.

"Sharptooth," Harry spoke suddenly. "Is it possible for me to assign someone or is that the bank's prerogative? You have been very helpful so far and, though I have only met two goblins, I like you. Would it be possible for you to manage these accounts?"

The goblin was floored and Minerva was as well. This was an account that would be fought over to be able to keep the standard 10% from any and all net profits that investments returned. It could help make a goblin very rich in their world and Sharptooth felt compelled to explain this to Harry, who simply nodded in return.

This young wizard was just one surprise after another and Sharptooth had never met a wizard he had liked so much - besides the fact that he was literally handing him a very nice promotion on a silver platter without even realizing it. In that moment, he wasn't even thinking about what this would mean for him within Gringotts. He was about to be an account manager for a very senior account for an Ancient and Most Noble House. No, two accounts! He made up his mind to support this young wizard in whatever way he could. Harry would wield sufficient political power someday and he would need guidance and support given his unique situation.

"I can, Mr. Potter. Shall I continue investments based on the account history?"

"Sure. How do I get bank statements? Can we make an appointment to discuss things once I have had a chance to come to terms with everything?

"Certainly, Mr. Potter - we can correspond via owls. Let me get a few things ready for you before you leave."

The goblin moved behind the desk again and returned with a bowl with the most unusual designs on the side. Whatever it was, Harry assumed it to be an ancient script and it was certainly coursing with magic. That familiar feeling from before had returned and he noticed the slight shivers it had sent throughout him, and causing his arm hair to stand upright.

"This is a ritual bowl that the bank uses to generate vault keys to provide you access to your accounts. Since you are underage, you can only remove things from your trust account; however, when you reach the age of fourteen, because you are the heir to the Potter and Black accounts, you will be legally emancipated. Normally, this happens at seventeen - but given your status as the last of your line - you will be become an adult in our world. At that time, you will have access to all of the vaults listed."

Harry processed this information and was slightly shocked. He would have to become educated in politics if he was expected to vote on issues so soon. It wouldn't hurt to get caught up with wizarding customs and traditions anyways, but now he had a reason.

"We will both prick our fingers and give a drop of blood. This will provide you with keys and link me to your accounts so that I may manage them for you. No one can access your accounts unless you perform this ritual with them. Also, even giving me access to your accounts, I will note that I can only keep up the status quo. Should I want to invest differently, I would need your approval."

Harry agreed, feeling more confident that he had made the right choice in assigning Sharptooth as his account manager given that they had just met. Additionally, he thought the incentive of the goblin keeping ten percent would only help him make more money and protect his family's money.

He gave his finger once more and in no time at all two drops of their blood was added to the bowl. The runes, as the ancient script was called, around the rim began to glow in a mix of red and purple colors and the same colored light began to swirl within the bowl. It was quickly becoming more intense and soon the colors of light began to condense and take on a corporeal shape, and finally, a golden key was produced that floated briefly in the air before settling into the bottom of the bowl. The goblin reached for the key and put it onto a thin golden chain that could fit around Harry's neck. He then handed it to Harry's outstretched hands and noted the reverence in which he accepted the key.

"Keep this with you, Harry, and it will give you and only you access to your account. The account has also recognized my blood and has given me access to manage your accounts. The ritual gives me access to only manage and invest, I could never remove something without your expressed and written permission. If you ever add another individual, two keys will be made – but we caution our members on giving someone that much control. Currently this key is set to your trust vault but we can change that to the others when the time comes. It will also allow you to draw funds from your account at various shops so you don't have to carry so much gold around. I will do everything to make your accounts prosper."

Harry placed the key around his neck and fingered it, thinking about how it linked him to his family. He would treasure the small gold key not because of the wealth it signified, but because it would remind him that this was real and would constantly remind him of his ancestry.

Sharptooth handed over some parchments, as he learned that was the name for paper in the wizarding world, which listed the terms of managing the account and again explained how the goblin would be paid. Harry thought the commission was more than fair and accepted the small moneybag that Sharptooth handed him.

"This bag is charmed to hold more than it seems. We can take you down to your vault now and you can get a bit of gold and go on your way. Is there anything else I can help you with at this time?"

Harry took the bag and tied it around his waist.

"Thank you for everything, Sharptooth. I look forward to your owls and look forward to seeing you again."

He extended his hand out to the goblin upon standing. The goblin's eyes bulged from its sockets but the goblin slowly extended his own hand to shake Harry's.

Minerva wasn't surprised given everything she knew about the boy - he was always doing things differently and looked forward to seeing at how else he could rock the boat, so to speak. He was a breath of fresh air and his parents would be very proud.

"Likewise, Mr. Potter. I think this is the beginning of a fruitful relationship. Just know that you have my respect." The goblin was also looking forward to seeing what this young man would do in the future - it certainly wouldn't be boring.

They turned to exit through the oak door with its gold trim and the goblin directed them down the hall to the carts that would take them down into the depths of the earth where the vaults were guarded and protected by more than just enchantments.

After a thrilling and nail-biting ride under the bowels of the bank, they arrived at a stone ledge that was illuminated by crackling torches. There were stalagmites and stalactites that outlined several alcoves that housed these ornate and ancient looking doors. Harry glanced at Minerva, and not for the first time wondered if her bun was held in place by something _a little_ stronger than hairspray considering there wasn't a strand out of place and the cart had been going exceedingly fast.

The goblin, Griphook, asked Harry to touch his key to the door and after some clicks and groans it opened to reveal a room similar in size to the Dursley's living room that was filled with mounds of these golden coins called galleons. He turned towards Minerva and asked how much he should take out.

"A few handfuls should suffice Harry for some spending money in the future. You can make most of your purchases today by providing your key in the store and money will be taken from your account. I'm to understand it is much like the muggle check system that your mother once described for me."

Harry pocketed about one hundred galleons, thinking it a rather excessive yearly allowance, but he hardly thought he would put a dent in his trust vault, let alone the main Potter vault.

He looked around the room and noticed a small black table that had what he guessed was the cloak on it, some parchment that looked like a very large brochure, and three letters placed on top of everything. With everything that had been going on, he had completely forgotten about the letters.

He cautiously approached the table with Minerva and read the top letter that wasn't sealed.

 _Our Dear Harry,_

 _We had hoped it would never come to this but your mother insisted on being prepared for everything. We hope that this isn't too much for you and whatever has happened know that we love you. We left letters for you that will explain everything or as much as we can think to write. We wish we could be there for you but want you to know that we have done everything we could think of to protect you and provide for you. You were and always will be the most important thing to us._

 _This cloak is a Potter Family Heirloom. It has been with us for hundreds and hundreds of years. It is an invisibility cloak and I used this to explore Hogwarts with my friends. Use it well! It has been charmed (your mother's specialty) to always return to this vault for you if you drop a bit of your blood on it - so don't worry about ever losing it! Keep it secret though; however, if Minerva is still around (I used to call her Minnie, a term which took her quite a while to come to terms with), she will most likely remember it – my friends and I did tend to get into some mischief at Hogwarts._

 _The parchment is something that my friends (Remus Lupin (moony), Sirius Black (padfoot), and Peter Pettigrew (wormtail)) and I (prongs) came up with at Hogwarts. We called it the Marauder's Map. We spent years exploring the castle trying to discover all of its secrets. If you hold your wand to it and speak, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," it will provide you with a map of Hogwarts – and secret passages - and the location of everyone within! It served us quite well! It is important to erase it when you are done or anyone could read it. Simply place your wand on it again and say, "Mischief Managed," and it will erase itself. Your mother seemed to think it was like an etch-a-sketch. Your mother was less approving of some of our pranks, but also charmed this to return to this vault with a drop of your blood if you ever loose it. I would also keep this secret, but I hope you continue our legacy, even if your mother is rolling her eyes at me. Hogwarts has many secrets and even we didn't discover everything. I hope you can find a home away from home there. Study hard._

 _We love you very much Pronglet!_

 _James & Lily_

Harry couldn't help it; he started sobbing and was clutching this letter so tightly that it started to ball up. He had to really focus not to tear it and folded it in half and put it back on the table.

Minerva was quick to wrap her arms around him and knelt down so that he could rest his head on her shoulder as the sobs started wrecking his small frame. Just the thought of being so loved and having something that belonged to his parents was more than he had ever wanted or thought he would get. He would treasure these heirlooms forever and was relieved that his mother had made them so he never lost them; he would never have forgiven himself if he did.

After several moments where Minerva could only offer supportive care, his sobs lessened and he started sniffling in an attempt to steady himself once more.

Minerva would need a very strong drink after all of this and could only guess the contents of the letter and the significance it would have on the boy. Harry extracted himself from her embrace and though he had just been utterly gutted, his eyes had never seemed so alive and full of life. They were practically shinning.

"My parents wrote me a little note," he said quietly, "they also left letters and some heirlooms. I think I will save the letters for later, for when I am home."

He was trying to breathe in deeply now and steady himself amid the sniffles.

"My dad used to call you Minnie?" He asked looking to break some of the tension and was interested in her reaction.

Which was immediate and in the form of a snort. It helped her not to start crying as well thinking back to how those boys had caused her so much grief with their antics.

"Your father and his friends had some interesting adventures at Hogwarts and could have been described as troublemakers and could be quite cheeky. They did grow up, thankfully. I think it is in my best interest if I don't ask about the cloak or the parchment - something tells me I have seen them before and will see them again," she said knowingly.

"I just hope you use them for better purposes than your father and his friends did."

Harry chuckled softly and grabbed the cloak and the map and the letters and placed them lovingly into the small book bag that he had brought with him. He wiped his eyes and his nose on his sleeve and Minerva led him out of the vault. Griphook was waiting by the cart and soon they were ascending towards the surface. They had a lot of shopping to do, after all.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think and thanks for reading!**


	4. Diagon Alley

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, continuing to edit and repost. I fear it may take some weeks to get all of this back up – so thank you in advance. All of the PMs and comments have made this situation easier and your support is very encouraging.

Continue to let me know what you think and I hope you like the way that I am editing this. I've notice that my writing has improved a great deal since I first posted all of this!

Posted 1/20/16

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything!**

* * *

Harry and McGonagall exited the bank, both needing to blink a few times for their eyes to readjust to being outside in the natural light. As they stood there for a moment, Harry felt different from the person that he had been when he had first walked into the bank.

How could he be the same though? A week ago, he was just Harry and now he was an heir to two Ancient and Noble Houses. Now he had a sense of history, some tangible connection to his family and his roots. Furthermore, he now had physical things that had belonged to his parents.

Which meant more to him than money, though he was thankful his future was taken care of. But what mattered most were their words, so full of love and support. Reading that letter was something that he never thought that he would ever be able to properly describe. He could only wonder what would the letters bring?

After their eyes had settled to the brightness, he followed Minnie down the marble steps of the bank. His father's nickname suited her and, for some strange reason, she allowed him to keep using it.

The key to his vault was safely tucked under his striped button up shirt, a style that didn't exactly blend in with the crowds milling about Diagon Alley. But he really wasn't that worried considering he was planning on getting a complete set of wizarding wear shortly.

"Minnie?" he said with a small upturn to his lips. He just liked this woman and didn't regret trusting her one bit. Also, saying that name made him feel closer to his dad.

If it had been anybody else, Minerva would have started yelling in a thick Scottish brogue reminding him or her to respect ones elders. But it was Harry and he was a Potter and she would always have a soft spot in her heart for James, and Harry was quickly making a similar impression. She didn't think she could deny him something that connected him to his parents; though she would have to set some ground rules.

"You know, that name is only appropriate for outside of Hogwarts and should only be used privately. I wouldn't want others to think it was all right to call me that foolish name. Apparently, only Potters are allowed to call me that."

He didn't want to be too cheeky with a response and quickly agreed with a warm smile before taking on a more serious disposition.

"Thank you, not just for being with me in the bank but for the vault and everything. That was a lot of information to process and I'm glad I didn't have to work through it alone. I still have questions about the Blacks though, and about Sirius – the note mentioned he was my dad's friend?"

Minerva tried her best to steel her facial expression from giving away to sadness. She didn't know how Harry would react to hearing about James and Sirius being friends and then the betrayal that had caused his parent's death - and then still being named the Black Heir! That alone would be a shock for anyone to hear, especially considering everything he had already dealt with in the last week. This was liable to just break him, but he had a right to know and she would rather him hear it from her than from somebody else. She was becoming quite protective of him and didn't want to see him suffer needlessly.

"Harry, that is a difficult story to tell and we should probably wait until we can sit down, perhaps over dinner tonight would be best as our lunch will most likely be very quick considering all of your supplies that we have to pick up yet."

She considered it for a moment and cast a quick tempus charm to see that it was just before noon. They would have plenty of time to get his necessary items for Hogwarts and then settle down for a proper dinner where this discussion could take place. She had nothing else scheduled for today, making Harry her first and only priority.

"We should probably get your trunk first, seeing as you could use it to store your other supplies and then perhaps we could get a quick bite to eat and then finish getting your things. Then of course we can sit down to a nice meal tonight because I reckon we will need it with all the shopping ahead of us. And we can talk about Sirius and the Blacks at that time before I bring you home. Does that sound like a plan?"

"Sounds good to me," he agreed and he turned to follow her through the considerably larger crowd of people milling about than were present when they had arrived in Diagon Alley that morning.

"So, what kinds of trunks are there? How will a trunk fit all of my clothes and books and supplies? Can we ship things to Hogwarts?"

He didn't see how a trunk could fit everything he was supposed to bring. Unless it was like the small moneybag that he had received from Sharptooth, and could hold far more than it looked. Of course, this only led him to wonder what were the limits of that particular piece of magic: could you expand something infinitely or was it constrained by an item's initial size?

Minnie answered before he could become lost in his thoughts.

"There are several different kinds of trunks. The basic ones have only one compartment and are twice as big on the inside – a rather nifty use of an expansion charm that is quite popular. Others have multiple compartments and even libraries or apartments."

"A Library!" Well, Harry knew which one he was getting as his eyes glazed over leaving behind a dreamy expression. Minerva seemed to as well.

"Those are expensive, Harry, and not a very standard trunk for school-age children. However, I feel like you will not settle for anything else and you would use it appropriately, I hope."

Harry could hardly contain himself as they walked into the shop and greeted the sales associate. He immediately started asking about the trunks that contained libraries.

"Easy now lad," the older gentleman responded.

"We have all sorts of trunks, though for Hogwarts students we usually sell these basic models over here." He moved to point in their general direction.

"Those trunks that you were enquiring about cost a lot of money."

Minerva decided to intervene at this moment to make the clerk aware that Harry could afford it and, more importantly, wouldn't leave the shop without one.

"Excuse me, sir," she added. "I can assure you that he possesses the funds for a trunk with a library and it may be easier, and will certainly be quicker, if you just showed him which models you carry."

Minerva was well known in the wizarding world and wasn't one to pull pranks, and if she said money was not an issue and that the boy really wanted one, then the clerk would certainly look forward to the extra commission that one of the higher-priced trunks would net him.

"Alright, the most basic unit contains just a single compartment containing one library but if you are looking for something that will be suitable for Hogwarts, may I suggest one that has a closet for your clothes in addition to the standard chest for your school supplies? You wouldn't want your potion ingredients getting your clothes dirty, now would you?" He added.

If he was practically guaranteed a sale, he might as well make the most of it, though he wouldn't sell the kid something he _really didn't_ need. The man proceeded to show the pair one such model that had three compartments and was controlled by using three crystals that were being used in place of a lock. If you pushed the first crystal and opened the trunk you would see the compartment that would contain his school supplies: his cauldron and telescope and perhaps a broom for when he was older.

The second crystal would access his closet. The trunk opened to reveal a staircase that went down into a medium-sized room. There was space to hang things as well as a wardrobe made of a rich, dark wood and a small sitting area that consisted of a brown chocolate lounge chair made of leather.

Finally, the last compartment accessed with the third crystal contained a library that could hold over 4,000 books. Harry was positively ecstatic when they went down and he knew he would be spending the majority of his remaining summer down here going through his course books. There was a light brown desk made of oak and another leather piece of furniture but this looked more like an oversized bed than it looked like a couch.

The desk reminded him of the one in _The Godfather_ , one of Petunia's guilty pleasures.

However, there was no fireplace in the library but he was told there were enchanted windows on the sides that could show a variety of views from snowy mountains to a babbling brook in the forest. Harry liked this feature as it would somewhat take away from the fact of where he actually was. It was a rather cool bit of magic, too.

"Is it possible to change any of the coloring or decor?" Harry asked.

"We can customize it for you here or you could do it yourself once you have learned the appropriate charms – the only thing you can't do is make any of the rooms bigger."

Harry thought it would give him a goal to works towards and so decided to buy it as is. One thousand galleons later and Harry was the proud owner of a trunk that included instructions on how he could set a password to ensure that no one but him could open the trunk. He was also happily surprised to get instructions on how to protect himself when he was inside of the trunk, which he hadn't even thought of because he had been over-excited about owning something so extraordinary.

The shopkeeper approached the trunk and took out his wand and motioned for Harry's attention.

"You can also shrink the trunk by tapping your wand on this corner, three times." The man proceeded to demonstrate.

The trunk shrunk into a briefcase that harry could carry around and since it came with a permanent feather-light charm, he could carry it around very easily. He also explained how three taps of his wand could unshrink the trunk.

They thanked the man and exited the store with a means to carry the rest of Harry's school supplies.

The pair stood outside the trunk shop for a minute as Minerva had a sudden thought about a quick change of plans, while Harry was fondling his trunk/briefcase. It was currently a dark forest green festooned with emerald-colored crystals near the lock and trimmed in silver that Harry liked very much. Though it was meant to carry things, he had decided not to put his backpack with the cloak and map in it.

His treasured possessions would be kept separate. In addition, he would have to research charms to make his trunk more secure to carry around and leave it in his room for the time being. He thought it would take him a while to figure out the charm his mother had used on his map and cloak if he wanted to reproduce it. If it was going to contain his library then he was going to do his best to keep it protected.

However long it would take didn't matter, for he had a goal now. And having a purpose was the best way to gain knowledge since one just needed to find a solution to your problem.

For the time being, it was enough to know that his map and cloak would always return to him via the bank, for he had immediately pricked himself in the vault and gave each a few drops of blood before asking Minnie to heal him afterwards. The cloak and map had briefly glowed emerald green as they absorbed the blood. Seeing his mother's work come to fruition when the magic had activated it was mesmerizing.

Minerva's voice roused harry from his thoughts.

"Harry, I know I said we would eat now, but I'm wondering whether it would be a better idea to get your measurements taken for your clothes and then we can pick them up after we eat or later in the day once we've gotten everything else."

Harry didn't have a problem with it at all.

They began walking in a direction that would lead to Madam Malkin's where Harry was quickly fitted for robes, cloaks, trousers, and shirts. While there, he decided he would also have to make a trip to get new muggle clothing but would do that later. Ultimately, he picked out a range of fabrics for his clothes, but a good majority focused on a silk/cotton hybrid that was very comfortable. Plus, they self-adjusted to the season and could be warn year round.

A mix of brown and black were chosen for the fitted slack that would also be able to accommodate any growth spurts with a nifty, and personalized, expansion charm. Only the charm wouldn't last forever but he was at least guaranteed a few years.

For the shirts, he chose dark green, navy blue, and black. His cloaks were either dark green with silver trim - which caused Minerva's right eye to slightly twitch at his apparent inclination towards the colors of Slytherin- or black that had a trim of gold filigree designs. He had never been one to desire luxurious things, but he decided that it was important to honor his family and look his best.

However, he would make sure that what he wore was comfortable and still made him feel like Harry, so he had turned down several cloaks made from acromantula silk - it was a bit excessive for his tastes. Of course, he did splurge a little on a pair of leather boots that were dragon hide. The fit was exceptional and they would be sturdy enough to wear in any condition and were charmed to keep his feet cool in the summer and warm in the winter. At any rate, he thought that he had made practical choices.

When they were finally finished, the pair headed to the Leaky Cauldron a little after one o'clock. Sandwiches and crisps were brought out and Minerva even surprised Harry with his first butterbeer. It was slightly alcoholic but he was told that witches and wizards processed alcohol better than muggles. In the end, he found that it tasted more like cream soda than anything, but it did make him feel warm all over. And a bit sleepy.

"Have you given any thought to a pet, Harry? The most popular pets are a cat or an owl. Which would you prefer?" Minerva asked before she took a bite of her turkey club.

"Oh, I was thinking about getting an owl," Harry replied.

"So that I can correspond with Gringotts and I saw something about owl-ordering in the trunk shop. Do other shops have that? It would be a lot easier to just order things that way."

Minerva nodded her head and she proceeded to take a nice refreshing gulp of gilly water.

"I was also thinking about a snake, since I can talk to them." Harry then blurted out nonchalantly.

That simple statement almost caused her to spit her drink out. As it was, she had a hard time keeping the gilly water from going down the wrong way and started coughing.

Harry noticed her reaction and sighed. "I take it talking to snakes isn't that normal, is it?"

She took a minute to collect her thoughts as she was once again thinking if there was going to be an hour, just one, where Harry didn't completely turn her world upside down.

"Well, Harry - I wouldn't say it is abnormal to talk to snakes," she said quietly after recovering from her coughing spasm. The change in volume was something that Harry picked up on.

She continued, "it is just that it is very rare. One who has the ability to talk to snakes is called a parselmouth and the language they speak with snakes is called parseltongue."

She saw that Harry was beginning to draw in on himself after yet another thing that made him stand out and needed to add her two cents on the matter.

"Personally, I don't think there is anything wrong with the ability; it comes from magic. Though, I would caution you to keep this information to yourself for the time being and only share it with those you trust to keep it a secret. Being a parselmouth is a trait that some people consider a sign of a dark wizard and you could be judged unfairly."

Harry hunched his shoulders and looked down at his hands that were in his lap.

"At least, I'm pretty sure that I can talk to snakes. I had a conversation with one in the back yard once but I convinced myself it was a dream."

He turned his head to the side before looking at her, catching her eyes, " I don't want to be a dark wizard. I'm just … I'm just starting to feel like I'm not normal, even for a wizard."

The food on his plate no longer looked appetizing. Harry was starting to feel like every time he thought he was getting a handle on this wizard thing, one simple statement would throw everything off again. It was getting to the point where he didn't know how much more he could take.

His uniqueness made him wonder if it would make it hard for him to socialize at Hogwarts, something that he had wanted to become better at. At least Minnie was here - giving him this information in private.

In fact, Minerva was starting to feel much the same way. It was one surprise after the other with Harry and she needed to make sure that she didn't lose him. This was Lily and James' son and she would be damned if she would do anything but be there for him.

"Harry, it doesn't make you dark," she said gently.

He looked in her eyes and saw that she was speaking the truth and that she was worried about him and wanted to help.

"May I share a theory with you?"

She continued when she saw that he nodded his head while trying his best not to look too dejected.

"Some traits run in families, special gifts if you will. For instance, parseltongue, or being a metamorphmagus - witches or wizards that can change their appearance at will. These may get passed down in a family but it tends to show only in those individuals that have a very strong connection with their magic. In other words, their magic allows the trait to come to life. The abilities themselves are not bad or good, much like magic - it is what you -"

And she reached across the table to point at his chest for emphasis.

"-do with it," she finished.

It was this act that caused Harry to finally settle down and he could feel the tension leaving his body. She was right, of course. It all came down to choice.

"Thanks Minnie," he stated appreciatively.

"I would still like a snake though, it would be nice to have something to talk to from time to time."

She had expected nothing less and nodded her head in an affirmative manner.

"I take it by your reaction that my dad wasn't a parselmouth?" He asked already expecting a negative answer.

She shook her head.

"Do you know anyone that speaks parseltongue?" He followed.

Well this was going to be a difficult question to answer, and here she thought that lunch was going to be simple with some light chatting. Perhaps she could soften the blow a little.

"Harry, it is important to emphasize again that it is the choices and the intent behind them that make something good or evil. Not the trait itself."

He had a sneaking suspicion that he already knew who it was. The man from his dream had been practically hissing.

"It was Voldemort, wasn't it?"

Minerva was slightly disconcerted at how observant he was and the ease in which he said the name that most grown adults couldn't. And he had more of a reason than most to be terrified by that name but didn't know it was taboo. She supposed that it could definitely be worse, just imagine if he had been abused and hadn't said anything to anyone. At least he was intelligent and didn't fear a name.

She nodded.

"I still want a snake though, and hey," he shrugged, "maybe I can change people's views on parselmouths. Show that it isn't evil," he concluded.

"I have no doubt, Harry." She smiled at him.

He was taking this well, better than she would have thought. But she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth and complain.

They finished their lunch and Harry insisted that he pay in appreciation for all of her help, which she accepted on the condition that she would pay for dinner.

Their next stop was at the Magical Menagerie where all sorts of magical and normal animals were sold. He was excited at the prospect of getting one pet and, hopefully, another. If he really was a parselmouth, it would be exciting to talk with a snake – he wondered what types of conversations they would have.

Preferably, he would also want to pick out a snake that was nice and didn't bite him.

Once inside, Harry had been instantly drawn to this white, snowy owl that was immediately on the right. The sign indicated that it was a female owl and the price had kept being reduced.

She was gorgeous with little black spots scattered throughout her feathers. It reminded him of chocolate chip ice cream.

"Hello pretty lady, you are the most beautiful owl I have ever seen." Harry made a move to hold out his hand.

"Easy lad," the attendant warned, noticing the subject of his fascination.

"She is pretty fickle and doesn't appreciate many people. I can't in good conscience sell her to people without warning them. Lost a lot of money on her, she is supposed to be one of the more intelligent breeds - stuck up if you ask me."

The owl hooted at that, her light yellow eyes narrowing at the man in annoyance. Harry took it to mean she was indignant at the comment and turned to look back at her eyes, seeing if he could get to _know_ her. Unbeknownst to Harry, the owl was doing the same thing with him.

"I bet you are very intelligent," he spoke softly. "I don't think you are stuck up, you just don't want to settle for just anyone."

She hooted again, but unlike before, this wasn't menacing; it sounded like 'correct.'

Harry decided to take a chance and stuck his finger next to her cage, remaining alert. She put her beak on his finger and lightly squeezed, and then hooted again.

"If you would like," he said towards the owl, "I could take you. I would need you from time to time to deliver a few letters but you could hunt as much as you like and remain outside or wherever you prefer. You would be well taken care of."

Harry took the hoot to mean, 'okay.' The shopkeeper was surprised, but ultimately thankful that he was finally getting ride of her.

Ten galleons were handed over and in addition to the owl, Harry had also received a cage and some owl treats. Minerva thought the entire scene was touching, and suggested that Harry ask if the owl wanted to fly back to the Dursleys. She explained how owls could find their destination and rarely got lost as they made their out of the store.

One hoot and a small nip of her beak against his cheek later and she took flight in a direction he hoped was towards the Dursleys, but would have to trust what he had just learned.

"Minnie, can we go back in and look at the snakes if they have them?"

He wanted to see if there were any snakes available since he hadn't even explored the shop as he had gown straight to the snowy owl.

"Of course, just be _careful_ " she spoke while raising her eyebrow pointedly. He got her meaning of being discrete and headed back in and went towards the reptile section, which was in the back of the store.

Again, he was immediately drawn to one tank in particular after a brief glance at what they had. It housed a dark gray snake with silver and blue scales scattered throughout, and its girth was no bigger than his thumb. The sign indicated that it was possibly male and half a meter in length.

Since the shopkeeper was in the front with another customer and Minerva was standing watch to give them privacy, he decided to chance a few words.

" _Hello… c-can you hear me_?" Harry spoke unsurely.

The snake raised its head and blinked a few times before staring at him intensely.

" _You are a speaker, youngling_?" It asked with a hint of surprise.

" _I guess_ ," Harry replied, " _I was pretty sure I was one as I had a conversation with the snake in our backyard but it had been when I was very young and I thought it was just a dream or an overactive imagination_."

" _It is an honor to speak with someone who knows the language. It is very rare to find one_. _Is there something I can help you with_?"

Minerva just heard hissing and she had closed her eyes and muttered 'oh Merlin' under her breath at the confirmation of his talent.

" _I had hoped to find a snake to bring home and talk to, perhaps even be a friend_ ," he answered honestly.

" _You weren't looking to bond and be my master_?" the snake asked in an exasperated fashion.

" _Bond? Master_?" Harry supplied. " _I don't know what that means. I wanted a companion to bring with me to Hogwarts, which is a school of magic that I will be attending in September. I just found out I was a wizard last week in fact._ "

He found it very easy to talk with the snake; it didn't seem weird or anything. It was very natural.

" _You are unique, young one. Many would look to bond with a snake, especially one as rare as I, and become our master. They find it helps to focus their magic and makes them more in tune with their magical core_."

Harry scrunched up his eyebrows in thought.

" _What is bad about them wanting to help focus their magic? Wouldn't they treat you well?"_ Harry didn't see how that could be bad, unless…

 _"_ _They can force us to do things that we may not want to do – we do not enjoy being subjugated to their will. We must be careful who we choose."_

Harry blanched, feeling ashamed for his assumption.

" _That's horrible! I wouldn't want anyone telling me what to do... And I don't want to control anyone, I just want someone to share things with,"_ he whispered longingly.

The snake lifted its head a little higher and looked searchingly in Harry's eyes.

" _That is very good to hear. I would be more than happy to be your companion. Even happier to bond with you - we get something out of it as well. We are tied to your magic and can live longer - though it's not worth having a cruel master. We have to decide wisely to allow a bond, though sometimes a very powerful wizard can usurp our control and force us to act as if we were bonded._ "

Harry smiled.

" _I would like that and wouldn't want anyone to force themselves on you, though are you poisonous? I am very new to all of this and want to make sure I can bring you to Hogwarts_."

" _I am very poisonous young one, though if we are bonded, I cannot bite someone unless you command me. We only bite in self-defense_."

" _Hang on a minute, err, do you have a name_?" He asked.

" _We are unnamed until bonded, our master chooses a name_ "

" _What would you like to be called, if I can take you_?"

" _I would be honored if one such as you would name me. You are very kind and genuine. We can always tell what resides within a person_."

" _I would call you 'Kaa,' after a character in a book I read. The snake was a friend to the human and that is very much what I hope for you to be._ "

" _I like it, youngling. I want to be this Kaa for you._ "

Harry turned to McGonagall and said in his most innocent voice.

"Minnie, can I take him with me to Hogwarts. He has consented to bond with me and won't be able to hurt anyone, unless I told him to - which I wouldn't. He - hang on."

He turned to the snake, " _Kaa, you are a male, correct? Your tag is uncertain, no offense."_

 _"_ _Yes, youngling, and no offense, I am very rare. An Egyptian Apophis Asp. There are very few of us left_."

Harry smiled at his new friend. He would have to ask what an Apophis Asp meant later, he wasn't up on rare magical snake breeds.

"I just wanted to make sure he was male as the tag was uncertain, and he is." Harry continued as he turned his attention back to McGonagall.

It was interesting to note that the transition from English to parseltongue must be a subconscious thing because he did it without thinking.

She thought back to the exchange between Harry and the snake and needed to know more about this bond.

"Tell me more about this bond, I have to make sure the other students would be safe."

That was reasonable, better than an outright 'no.' Harry reiterated what Kaa had said about bonds and masters and focusing ones' magic and extended lives. He emphasized that the snake could only bite if commanded to and they generally didn't unless it was in self-defense.

Minerva thought an Apophis Asp sounded interesting and wondered if Professor Snape knew anything about them – perhaps the shed skin could be used for something. Of course, as Deputy Headmistress she would be remiss in her duties if she didn't have an antidote for the venom prepared; just in case.

Ultimately, she gave her consent on the condition that he kept it in his room and didn't bring it to class.

"Thanks Minnie!" Harry said appreciatively.

Harry turned to Kaa and asked about how the bond was formed.

" _Kaa, how does one become bonded_?"

" _Youngling, since bonds have to be consented to by the snake, I would have to bite you – now don't be alarmed – it is a bite that is laced with my magic and is not poisonous to you. Some of my essence goes into you and some of your essence goes into me and the process is complete only after you name me. Naming is how you give your consent, a bond cannot occur unless we both agree to it. The magic will simply not take hold otherwise._ "

Harry looked around to see where the other people in the store were. Luckily, the shopkeeper was busy with a man thinking about buying something called a kneazle.

'Now is as good a time as any,' he thought.

Harry told Minerva what he planned on doing before sticking his left hand inside the tank; he wouldn't want to scare her by the snake suddenly biting him.

Kaa slithered over to his hand and quickly bit the top of it, giving a slight prick that started bleeding slightly. Harry then performed his role.

" _Kaa, I name you… and I hope we become great friends_." He added his own touch to the ritual.

Immediately, his wound healed leaving two faint scars and he felt this growing tingling sensation inside of him. The sensation began slowly where the bite had occurred and then slowly warmed his entire body and then quickly faded away.

" _Wow_ ," they both hissed quietly in unison.

All of the other snakes had their heads raised and were staring intently as the bond formed – it was a rare things to witness and was usually considered a great thing if the wizard didn't take advantage of the snake. Most snakes could only dream about being bonded to one such as Harry. The others thought the young one would make a fine companion based on what they had heard.

Harry then offered his hand to Kaa, and the serpent wrapped around his wrist – the contact sent bursts of warmth up his arm.

' _This feels nice_ ,' he thought.

' _I agree, my whole body is warm, youngling_.'

' _Wait, how can you hear my thoughts_?' He looked down at the snake, who had raised its head.

' _I think it has to do with the bond, try putting me down to see if it continues while we are separated_.'

Harry set Kaa down in his cage and tested their mental link.

' _Kaa, can you hear me_?'

Silence.

" _Kaa, do you think we can only do it when we are touching_?" He now voiced his question.

" _That would seem to be the case_ ," he hissed back.

" _Interesting. Did you know about this_?"

" _No youngling, our knowledge is limited to what has been passed down. Very few bonds do occur and they tend to be with larger snakes, making prolonged contact difficult. It is an unforeseen advantage for us. We will be able to communicate in public without anyone knowing that I am hidden under your robes_."

That was certainly an advantage and one that would come in handy without drawing unwanted attention to himself.

He looked at Minerva who had watched this little experiment unfold and she raised her eyebrow expectantly.

"We bonded, Minnie," he practically gushed. "And we can communicate with our minds when Kaa and I are in physical contacts. We will be able to communicate in public if he is hidden on my arm. This is wonderful!"

"That is certainly something, now we better purchase Kaa and then move on."

They brought the tank to the front and Harry paid 10 galleons for the snake - which was a bargain considering how rare the snake was. This was also why Harry wasn't questioned about purchasing a _very_ venomous snake – the shopkeeper assumed it was going to be used for some potion that required scales. It was a common reason for snakes to be purchased after all. Well, that and the shopkeeper didn't know exactly which breed it was. Otherwise, he wouldn't have even had it in the store.

They left the store and Harry asked Minerva to unshrink his trunk so that he could store the tank, but allowed Kaa to slither up and curl around his forearm. When the trunk was shrunk down again, he picked it up and they started walking to get his potion supplies and telescope.

They were very quick in getting those and managed to also pick up his clothes before only his wand and books remained.

As they approached Ollivanders Wand Shop, Harry began nervous. Minerva had been telling him how imperative it was that he got the correct wand because it would make his magic easier to use.

The first thing Harry noticed once he was inside was the dust. Nothing looked new and there were some areas completely covered in a very think layer of grime that was not appealing. Also, the counter was quite close to the door so there wasn't a whole lot of room to move around; Harry couldn't even hazard a guess for how many wands were stored in the rows behind the counter, which he supposed was the reason there was no space.

His thoughts were interrupted as his eyes caught a man coming from the back of the shop with white, Einstein-esque hair growing in every direction. Harry suddenly thought that his hair looked quite manageable in comparison.

"Ah, Minerva, how wonderful to see you again. Where are the rest of the muggle-borns," he asked looking around.

He was used to seeing Minerva every year as she led around those newest to magic. Surely there was more than one this year.

"Hello Mr. Ollivander. Actually, I will be around next weekend with that group. Today, I am accompanying Mr. Potter here." She moved to pat him on the shoulder.

White eyebrows rose slightly at that. "Excellent, I had been wondering when you would be coming around, Mr. Potter."

"Now, let's see if we can find you a suitable wand."

Harry was paying attention to everything this singularly odd man was doing. Mr. Ollivander told him how he remembered every wand he had ever sold including their length, core, and kind of wood. He could also tell you how stiff the wand was as well. Some wands he even picked up and put to his ear, and a few he even managed to lick. All of this was explained as him trying to select those that he thought that Harry should try.

Minerva seemed nonplussed by all of this, so Harry didn't outwardly react either.

However, every single wand that Harry tried was either immediately taken from him because something had shattered or had caught on fire. Sweat could be seen on Mr. Ollivander's brow now as he was muttering something about a tricky customer.

Kaa was starting to get restless and a few wands he had even mentally hissed at. At the moment, he was far more in tune to magic than Harry was – the bond's beneficial effect for Harry's magic would develop over time – and some wands did not agree with him at all.

Suddenly, it seemed that Mr. Ollivander had an idea, or he just gave up on Harry, because he stopped rummaging through his mountain of wands and went into the back.

"I wonder," he muttered as he returned to face Harry. "How about this wand?"

Harry hesitantly reached out to grab it.

' _ooooh, I like the feel of this one_ ,' Kaa thought as the wand was coming near.

Harry wrapped his fingers around the wand and immediately felt this rush as if hurricane-force winds were upon him. It was indescribable – it connected with something in the very center of his chest and unleashed this tingling sensation that danced along his skin. The tip of the wand began to glow in the most beautiful emerald green color that Harry had ever seen and illuminated all of their faces, so unlike the sickly light of the curse from his dreams.

The rush slowly settled and left Harry's hair in even more disarray than usual. Harry could hear and feel Kaa's pleasure at the wand. He felt him slither around his arm because of the energy release.

"Curious, Mr. Potter, very curious indeed."

Ollivander took a moment to collect himself while Minerva was unable to show any more shock at what happened around Harry. She would have been more worried at this point if something unusual _didn't_ happen.

Harry focused on the man after his magic had settled. It was the first time he could really _feel_ his magic, that there was something else under his skin that he could possible control. Oh, he couldn't wait to master it.

"Why is it curious, Mr. Ollivander?"

"I have remembered every wand that I have ever sold. This wand is eleven inches and made from Holly. Its magical core contains the feather of a particular phoenix that gave just one other feather. In wandmaking, we call that a brother wand because they have a core from the same animal. It is very curious why you should be destined for this wand when its brother did unspeakable evil."

He thought about how to best phrase it. How do you tell someone that his wand's brother killed his parents?

Harry was ahead of him.

"Let me guess, Voldemort?" Harry deadpanned.

Both adults gasped at the sudden and unexpected exclamation of the taboo name.

Minerva's gasp was mostly due to yet another connection that Harry now shared with Voldemort. She was one of the few that knew of the prophecy, but as a general rule thought divination was a very imprecise branch of magic and thought most visions of the future were dragon dung.

However, that didn't explain all of these 'coincidences.' She wondered about the meaning of the brother wand if Voldemort had already died – not to mention the parseltongue. What if he wasn't dead? Her mind was reeling with the possibilities: did Dumbledore know, did he suspect? She would have to think on this. Harry's rapid-fire questioning abilities were starting to wear off on her.

Ollivander's eyes answered his question. Harry was honestly getting a little annoyed at the constant reminder of Voldemort in his life and everything that they apparently had in common.

Kaa was privy to what Harry was working out in his mind and decided to interrupt.

' _Youngling, I sense there is more to this story than that. I can taste hesitancy and apprehension on the one you call Minerva while the old one is truly curious about all of this. I would caution you to hold things to yourself in this moment. Perhaps ask Minerva later about the whole story. I think she is confused about something as well_.'

Harry's internal ranting had stopped to listen to Kaa's advice. Kaa told him that most snakes were very patient and liked to analyze before acting.

' _We can figure all this stuff out later; you are not alone in this anymore. Minerva is genuine - she is very protective of you. I get the feeling she is looking out for you. And you have me – you will always have me._ ' Kaa squeezed Harry's arm slightly to reinforce his support.

' _Thanks, Kaa I needed to hear that. I'm not used to having other people to lean on. I'm glad you are here and I wouldn't know what to do without Minnie! We can talk to her at dinner – I just want to go get my books and get out of this shop. It is creepy and I am beginning to feel it along my skin._ '

Harry turned to Minerva. "I suppose we can add this to our dinner conversation?"

She nodded, a pained look in her eyes.

He then glanced at Mr. Ollivander, "Thank you for the help today and for helping me with my wand. How much is it?"

He was trying his best to be polite.

Harry wasn't even up to figuring out if he could get a second wand at the moment, getting out of the store was his only goal. He needed a breather; hopefully the bookstore didn't have any unexpected surprises. But then again, there could very well be a book that unearthed something else unexpected if this trend continued.

The wand came to 15 galleons and Harry thanked the man again. Ollivander felt he needed to add something - brother wands were a rare occurrence. He would never have imagined brother wands involving the death of the parents of one of the owners, however.

"Mr. Potter, connecting with a wand in the way you did only happens when your magical core has a strong connection to the wands' core. It will allow you to have better access to your magic. I think it is safe to say that we can expect great things from you, regardless of the connection it shared with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's wand."

Harry nodded and then left the store because he didn't know how to reply to that. Minerva lingered a little to give a questioning look at Ollivander before also following Harry out of the door. She had been given a lot to think about, and the day was not over yet.

Ollivander soon put a 'be back in 10' sign on the store before heading into the back and writing a letter to the man who had given him access to the phoenix in the first place. He would want to know about this unique connection between Harry's wand to that of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

The trip to Flourish and Blotts involved a lot of silence between Harry and Minerva. Kaa and Harry, however, were discussing everything through their mind link. Kaa was determined to learn as much as possible to protect his master and approved of Harry's plan to get as many books as possible. It would take time, but Harry had things he felt were _imperative_ to learn as quickly as possible.

Minerva was lost in thought. She was planning just how she would explain everything to Harry. She couldn't tell him everything but it wasn't because she wanted to hold things from him or thought that he was too young to process them. Some of the information was quite sensitive, especially when she was beginning to have doubts that Voldemort was really gone. She would have to ensure that Harry could protect what information she would give him and for that he needed to learn Occlumency. Normally, it wasn't something she recommended for students to learn – even though it had benefits of organizing the mind and making learning much easier with faster memory recall. The Deputy Headmistress in her didn't like the thought of students being able to hide things from her. Not that she would use Legilimency, but she liked to able to read people.

'Merlin help them if the Weasley twins ever learned this', she thought.

They entered the store and Minerva pointed to where Harry could pick up all of his first year texts. She knew he would want to purchase other books so she arranged with one of the workers to provide Harry parchment where he could select all of the other books he wanted. This way, when he went to pay for them, he just needed to hand them the list and they would hand the books over in a bag with an expansion charm on them instead of Harry lugging book after book up to the register.

Minerva had wanted to pick up a few books herself and figured she would give Harry a belated birthday present of sorts. She also perused through the latest Transfiguration Today because Harry would undoubtedly take a while going through his version of a candy shop. It was the last stop that they had to make before dinner and she was exhausted. She sat in one of the more comfortable chairs and settled in as Harry began to explore.

He was grateful for the parchment Minnie had gotten him to record all of the books he wanted. This way he would be able to focus on which books he wanted instead of worrying how he was going to carry everything. He knew though that he wouldn't be able to understand the more advanced texts and would wait on getting them. He was a believer in making sure one had a good understanding of the basic material before advancing. So he only selected a few additional books for every subject, books that talked more about the theoretical basics. For example, several of his supplemental potion texts centered on understanding the magical properties of ingredients and why certain things went together and certain things didn't.

Next, he selected texts that focused on channeling and controlling your magic. These, he figured, would help with his charms and transfiguration texts. The majority of his books centered on the magical world: history, customs, and politics, especially. He tried to find as many books as possible on recent events; he wanted to learn everything he could about this Voldemort person.

Finally, he picked up quite a few books on magical animals and snakes in particular. Kaa was quite excited about _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_. Harry had always been fascinated by Egyptian culture and found several books detailing and describing magical Egypt. Of course, _Hogwarts A History_ was also purchased.

When he went to pay at the counter about an hour later, he was happy that he noticed they participated in owl-ordering as well. He had only selected about a 100 books and was happy to note that they provided a list of all the books so Harry could update his library as he went along. He was sure though these books would last him a year if not more – some were very thick and he wanted time to process them. He would also have course work to contend with he reasoned. It would take time for him to learn what he felt he needed to know, but he needed to start somewhere. There was always a beginning and this was his.

Harry had added the books to his trunk's library with Minnie's help and they soon found themselves in a more upscale wizarding pub than The Leaky Cauldron. Minerva thought this would be more appropriate for their conversation as they could be assured a more private table and different clientele that frequented The Leaky Cauldron.

Once seated, Minerva had surprised Harry with several books that she had gotten him as a belated present. All had focused on the mind art known as Occlumency. They detailed various mediation techniques and different ways to organize the mind. She instructed him to begin there before moving on to the ones that went over how to construct defenses and protect your mind against someone using Legilimency.

Harry was slightly puzzled over why she was giving him these books.

"Harry," she began. "I am giving you these books because there are things I wish for you to know. These things are sensitive in nature and I wouldn't want anyone to pry them from your mind. I do intend to tell you everything but feel it prudent to make sure you can protect this information."

Harry nodded solemnly.

' _I knew she meant well_ ,' Kaa had intoned after he had learned what Minerva had said by Harry processing it for him. Snakes had difficulty with English but that didn't stop them from being able to taste the emotions or intent on someone, however.

"I will tell you what I can about the Blacks and about Sirius, but"

She paused, "V-Voldemort will have to wait until later." If Harry could say this, she would force herself to face this name as well.

"Now, it all starts with James' parents – your grandparents. Charlus Potter was a Gryffindor and he became enchanted with one Dorea Black of Slytherin. It was quite the scandal now mind you, as those houses don't tend to get along: a tradition that has sadly continued until today. Now, Dorea was the first-cousin of Arcturus Black who was the grandfather of Sirius Black. So James and Sirius were second cousins once-removed. That makes Sirius your third cousin."

She let that information sink in before continuing at his nod.

"Most families in the wizarding world are related in one way or another through all the intermarrying in the name of keeping their blood pure."

She noted with a slight disgust gracing her features.

"Aside from being related, James and Sirius were practically attached at the hip; it was rare to find one without the other. At Hogwarts that only intensified as they were both sorted into Gryffindor, much to the ire of the rest of the Blacks as they had been in Slytherin for centuries. They also found Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew as other Gryffindor first years. The four of them became a group that got into a fair amount of trouble in their days because they loved pranks and were thick as thieves. Remus, in fact, teaches at Hogwarts now. He is the Defense Against The Dark Arts Professor - DADA for short."

She paused again as they placed their drink order and she ordered Harry another butterbeer and for herself a rather large class of wine. She deserved it after the day she had and needed a bit of liquid courage as she continued this tale.

"Their friendship continued after they left Hogwarts and Sirius was the best man at your parents' wedding. He was named your Godfather as well."

Her wine then arrived and she took a very large sip. They ordered their food and she continued. Harry was hanging on her every word by this point.

"Now, some stuff happened and I will tell you once you have learned Occlumency… That I can promise. The short story is that Voldemort was after you and your parents and they went into hiding. Lily performed a particularly powerful and difficult to perform charm that would allow them to hide. It involved the secret of where they were hiding and that secret was stored in someone's very soul – only the person whose soul had the secret within them could tell it to others. In this way, it was thought that your parents and you would be safe. It was arranged for Sirius to be this Secret Keeper. However, he betrayed your father after a year of being the Secret Keeper and told it to Voldemort."

Her eyes were glistening with tears. She had been most surprised by Sirius' defection to the Dark Lord. She would never have imagined for him to stab James Potter in the back.

"That… that was the night Voldemort came to your house… and… you remember the rest," she finished with tears now escaping from her eyes.

Harry was stunned, furious even. To betray a friend like that, to betray anyone like that was something that he couldn't stand for.

With tears in his eyes and a fire in his heart, he asked through gritted teeth, "and what happened to Sirius Black?"

"Peter Pettigrew figured out what must have happened and went after Sirius. He confronted him in the middle of the street in central London and a fight ensued. Peter was killed along with 13 muggles. Sirius was carted off to Azkaban – a wizarding prison – where he will never see the light of day again!"

She downed the rest of her wine and ordered another.

Kaa was enraged at this betrayal as well and Harry was glad that he had Kaa with him for the umpteenth time that day. He was glad for the support.

Harry felt panged at the loss of Peter, even though he didn't know him, but he was proud that he was that loyal to his dad.

'He had honor,' he thought.

"And what of Remus?" Harry said absentmindedly.

Why hadn't Remus come looking for him?

Minerva had recovered somewhat from the outpouring of emotions.

"Remus took this very hard. He lost all of his friends at once and went away for some time. He returned about five years ago and has been teaching at Hogwarts ever since. He is very closed off though, too many scars… he lost as much as anyone that night. Except you," she finished.

She sipped on her second glass.

Harry would look forward to speaking with Remus. That was the one bit of good news in all of this, the only thing that kept his silent rage in check. He hated Sirius for what he had done. One day he would find out why the man had betrayed his parents.

'One way or another,' he promised himself.

Their food came, though both of them just picked at it. Harry's thoughts were all in a disarray. At least he knew just about everything now, he reckoned. One thing bothered him though, and this he suspected fell under the 'what she couldn't tell him now' clause.

"Why was Voldemort after me and my parents?" Harry had hit the proverbial nail on the head.

Minerva sighed. "I can't tell you that right now, Harry." She was torn. She thought he was certainly intelligent and mature enough to handle this, but knew it was sensitive information. But she had to be prudent.

Another small sip of wine was taken.

Harry noticed this and thought it was quite a break of character for her and wondered what information could be so important that it required mind protection and brought about this reaction in Minnie.

"I understand," Harry spoke quietly. "There must be something important about this. I thank you though for sharing what you have. Really, I appreciate how forthcoming you have been with all of this – though it certainly has been difficult to hear at times."

"It is the least I can do, Harry." She reached out to grab his hand.

"I promise that you are not alone in any of this. Any question you have, just write to me. You have an owl now."

Harry nodded his appreciation. He needed to be alone for a while though and just process everything. The sooner he learned more about this world, the better off he would be. He hoped.

They chatted aimlessly for the rest of the meal. Minerva didn't want him to just dump him back home after all of that. She was amazed at how he processed everything though. She suspected he had already been doing some of the meditation required for Occlumency as he had been growing up to deal with everything, especially the dreams. When they left, Harry was visibly tired though she felt comfortable leaving him. She suspected that they would owl chat over the coming weeks before term. Or she would just come back and check up on him.

It was a tired and exhausted Harry that found himself exiting the Knight Bus with Minerva later that evening. She had wanted to spend a bit more time with him and teach him how to use this service, should he ever need it. And she had imbibed too much wine to chance side-along apparation.

Minerva left him at the door, asking him if he wanted her to go in with him. But he assured her that he would be all right and just wanted to go to sleep. She gave a supportive pat on his shoulder and reminded him again to owl her with any questions. She watched him go through the door and took a calming breath before walking down the street to a spot where she wouldn't be seen as she disappeared into the warm August night.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think! I'm very happy with Kaa – I kinda wish I had him now :(**


	5. Petunia's Past

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading my updated fic! Now, I have my reasons for bringing things into play this early. I want to go in a different direction than what was written in the books.

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

Posted 1/29/16

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

Harry entered the house and quietly shut the door behind him, leaning back against the door and looking out at the hallway before him.

With his mind still focused on the events of the day, the only thought that he was really able to entertain centered on the cupboard under the stairs. When he was little, he used to take refuge in there after his bad dreams because he thought he would be protected in the small enclosure.

But he wasn't really a child anymore and no matter how much he wanted to escape from his problems, he knew that he couldn't hide from them – not anymore.

After resisting the urge to enter the cupboard, for once he was able to appreciate the normalcy of this place. Nothing out of the ordinary ever happened on Privet Drive.

'Well, except recently,' he thought.

He pushed off the door and continued on to the kitchen to get a glass of water. The Dursleys had already eaten and were watching one of their regularly scheduled programs. It wasn't that unusual for him to arrive after dinner if he had been spending time in the library so he really didn't have to explain where he had been. Not that they would have really asked. He was spent after everything that had happened and just wanted to head up stairs and begin the process of assimilating everything. However, he was glad that all of his school things fit inconspicuously inside of his briefcase so that he wouldn't have to explain anything tonight.

He would add that conversation with Petunia to his growing list of things he had to do from now until September 1st.

Harry finished his drink and then climbed the stairs and opened the door to his room. Once inside, everything felt different; like he had been gone for a week. His life had changed so drastically since he had left this morning.

The briefcase was place in the center of the room and tapped with his wand, transforming it back into his trunk. Even though he wasn't technically using magic, Harry was fast becoming used to the connection he felt between his core and his wand.

Minnie had told him about the restriction on underage magic and the consequences of such use, but he still thought it was going to be very difficult to resist the temptation. Maybe he could get a stick from the backyard and at least practice some of the movements he had seen in some of the books he had purchased in Flourish and Blotts. At least that way he wouldn't be enticed to use his wand as he learned the course material and material.

Focusing on his trunk, Kaa's tank was removed from the first compartment and placed next to Harry's bed. The snake then immediately slithered around Harry's room and started the process of making himself familiar with the surroundings.

Now that he looked at his bonded companion, and recognizing the importance that Kaa would have in his life, Harry knew that he would have to get something better than a cage. Ultimately, it would be Kaa's choice and he would ask him tomorrow.

However, something more urgent floated to the forefront of his mind.

" _Are you hungry, Kaa_?"

When he purchased him, he had also received a few weeks worth of food but didn't know how often Kaa needed to eat. Though, he had to smile thinking how easy it would be for Kaa to just tell him when he was hungry.

As Kaa responded, Harry put his backpack next to the tank and moved to sit on his bed for a few minutes.

" _No, youngling, I was fed a few days ago. Now that I am bonded, I can feed a little off our bond – specifically your magic – so I will not need to eat as frequently. Perhaps once a week would suffice but will let you know if I require anything_."

Harry nodded at Kaa who had curled up on himself on the heated stone that came with his tank.

" _How are you doing, youngling_? _Today was hard for you_."

Kaa had been attached to Harry for some of the harder moments of the day and knew exactly what had gone on in his head – though had also been filled in on earlier events throughout the day.

" _I'm not sure to be honest. It is so hard finding all of this out. I can't help but wonder 'why me.' I don't even know how to put what I am feeling into words at the moment. There is so much I don't understand… we have a lot of material to catch up on,_ " he sighed and got up from the bed.

Kaa recognized that Harry might just need time to process everything and left him be for the time being.

As Harry was rummaging through his small closet to change into his pajamas, an idea suddenly popped into his head.

He quickly removed the invisibility cloak from his bag and stood in front of the mirror and threw it over him. A wicked grin spread over his face as his reflection disappeared. His mind couldn't help but imagine all of the possibilities this family heirloom would provide him with.

It was nice to finally deal with something as non-complicated as an invisibility cloak: you wore it and you disappeared. There was nothing else to have to think about!

" _Youngling, I can't see you, but I can taste you_. _I take it your father's cloak works?_ _This will be a good protection for you_!"

Kaa practically hissed with delight.

" _This_ _ **is**_ _wicked_ ," Harry agreed but added, " _and I think it will be useful for the both of us. I don't imagine going many places without you_."

Harry was becoming quite used to the snake's presence and he was very happy with how everything had turned out.

Speaking of companions, he moved to the window and a small grin appeared when he spotted his owl perched happily in the tree.

She seemed to be reveling in the freedom and ability to stretch her wings whenever she pleased. The owl hooted suddenly as Harry removed his cloak and opened the window before flying in and landing gracefully on his desk. The first thing she did was to nip affectionately at his fingers.

Afterwards, Harry set her cage up and placed it on the small table by his desk that he had been using to place his alarm clock on.

He turned to her and asked her if she wanted to go in it. She voiced one of her menacing hoots. He took that as a no.

Then he asked if she needed any food or water – to which she hooted in a more affirmative sounding manner. Harry got the water and food bowls out of his trunk and placed them by her on the desk.

She took her fill and nipped his finger once more, content to be out of that store.

It was then that he decided to introduce his two familiars to each other while silently hoping that they would at least be able to tolerate each other considering what they were; he had been inexplicably drawn to both and wanted both of them in his life.

Harry reached into the tank and retrieved Kaa before turning to the owl and approached her slowly so as not to scare her.

"Hey girl..."

He paused; he really needed to give her a name.

"I promise I will name you tomorrow; I just haven't thought of one that is suitable yet."

He raised his left hand that had Kaa attached to his wrist and held him up to her eye level while still keeping some distance between the two.

"This is Kaa, girl. He is bonded to me and won't hurt you. I can somehow speak to snakes and when he and I are touching, we can communicate through our mind"

He reinforced what he had just said by touching his forehead and then slowly and gently touching Kaa's head and then his own forehead again.

She looked at him as if saying, 'yes I heard you the first time. Sheesh!'

"Both of you are important to me and I want you to get along, is that okay, girl?"

He reached his right hand out for her to nip at, he wanted to emphasize that she was important to him as well.

The owl and the snake eyed each other searchingly and they both studied the other for a moment before the owl looked away, satisfied with whatever she had seen because she turned to Harry and hooted an exceptionally pleasing sound he took to mean 'fine with me.'

" _I am more than all right with this youngling; I can sense she likes you and will be quite difficult to get rid of. I think she has claimed you as hers though, rather than the other way around._ "

Kaa chose to hiss this out loud out of respect to the owl, even though she wouldn't understand.

She hooted, however, in a way that said 'what he said was true.'

Harry was just happy to have the both of them and didn't even try to think about if she could understand parseltongue – it just wasn't important at the moment. They all seemed to get along and this very weird band of characters would now be a part of his family.

He moved to hold out his right hand and she nuzzled it with her beak before flying out of the window.

"Good night," he softly called to her as she landed on her perch in the tree.

An appreciative hoot was all that he got in response.

The window was left with a slight crack in case his owl needed something during the night, and then Harry finally changed into his pajamas before settling in for the night.

The next morning, Harry woke somewhat refreshed. Surprisingly, he had been able to fall asleep quickly and so never had to entertain any of the all-consuming thoughts that would have kept him tossing and turning throughout the night.

After getting out of bed, Harry spent the morning rummaging through his newly acquired purchases. However, around lunchtime – and just as Dudley and Vernon left to head into town - a knock sounded.

At first Harry wondered if his owl had made the noise before he came to the conclusion that someone was at his bedroom door and that it was likely Petunia. She was the only one that really ever talked with him.

Quickly, Harry placed Kaa in his tank and quickly threw his cloak over it, making it shimmer into nothingness. His trunk remained out in the open as he figured that now would be as good as time as any to have a conversation about him going to Hogwarts to study magic.

He opened the door to find Petunia standing there.

"May I come in, Harry?" she asked looking around apprehensively. It was easy to see that she was nervous and that this was likely not something that she had particularly wanted to be doing.

"Of course, Aunt Petunia." he moved to let her in.

Harry saw her eye the trunk when she had entered the room, moving to sit on the edge of his bed where she then stared straight ahead at the closet door.

"I see you got your school supplies," she said softly. "I had hoped that you would get them yesterday while we were out. I apologize for not offering to take you but it's difficult for me."

She stopped speaking and focused her eyes on him for a moment.

"That _school_ changed everything between me and my sister. I never got over being envious of her or what she could do, and by the time I had come to terms with it, it was too late. We had grown apart and she had left school and went into hiding for some reason after she had you. I never got to tell her I was sorry."

Harry was slightly shocked by Petunia's sudden gushing of her past. Especially when she was admitting her own shortcomings – not many people could do that.

She continued quickly, not wanting to draw this conversation out longer than was necessary.

"I had assumed that you would be going there as well – with two parents like _that_."

She admitted with some uncertainty. She didn't think she could say the word, 'magic.' Not with all the pain that not being able to perform it had caused her.

"Shortly before she … you came to live here, she wrote me a letter saying that terrible things were happening in her world. She was doing everything she could think of to keep you safe. Your mother said that she had arranged a very powerful protection for you and that this would keep you safe. However, her plan would only work if I took you in should something happen to her. Lily stressed that what she had done would extend to my family as well," she paused as tears were starting to well in her eyes.

"She promised me that she would do anything and everything to protect her family and that she had never stopped loving me."

Harry had unconsciously moved to the bed and sat next to his aunt and their trembling hands found each other as an understanding passed between them. Apologies and forgiveness didn't need to be uttered at this point - they were united in their grief.

"She gave me some pointers on things that might happen with you, and what you would need. To be honest, I don't know if she really thought I was the best to raise you – but she was convinced you would be safest here. It was very clear that you were everything to her."

Petunia's tears had stopped now. She looked at Harry's face and didn't know how to respond to the tears that had cascaded down his cheeks.

But she had to finish.

"Her biggest wish was to let you grow into the person that you wanted to be."

At this point, Harry was now tightly squeezing his aunt's hand for comfort, which was being reciprocated. It was the least Petunia could do, after all.

Harry had never expected this conversation to happen – to be told by someone that his parents had done everything that they could think of to protect him. Let alone Aunt Petunia. He felt the letter that his aunt had received was preparing her for his parent's death with their hope that he would be protected.

His parents really had sacrificed everything for him, and it was bittersweet. On one hand he had been so cherished and loved, but on the other – he didn't get the chance to know them.

"I am sorry if I wasn't more motherly towards you, Harry. I didn't know how to be. I don't know how to be…" she finished.

Petunia felt guilty. She had tried to forget the past as best she could. It was the only way she knew how to cope with the situation – and so she ignored it as much as possible.

But she couldn't anymore; at least with this. Harry deserved to be given these answers; no matter how much pain it caused her.

"Thanks Aunt Petunia," Harry sniffled.

"Life is hard and while I can't say I understand why you did things the way you did, I can understand that we all process things differently."

If Harry's readings had taught him anything, it was that everyone handled things differently. Sometimes life wasn't so much as living life to the fullest, but struggling to cope with the past. Struggling to just survive.

"Thank you Aunt Petunia, for telling me. I really appreciate it."

He finally understood why she had acted the way she did, and while it may not have been the best way of handling the situation; he could at least begin to understand her motivation behind it.

She moved to stand and released his hand.

"I take it you will need to be taken to the train station in September?" She looked pointedly at him.

He nodded.

"Just let me know in advance and I will take you," She moved to open the door but stopped and kept her back towards him.

"You are so like Lily, Harry. The way you talk and process everything. I think that is why it was so hard for me to be there for you. You remind me of what I had lost and the mistakes I had made. I am sorry for that, truly. But know that your mother would have been proud of you. I do hope you find your place and live a better and happier life than she did."

With that she exited without even turning around.

And now Harry really understood. That made so much flipping sense! His insides were churning and he fell over to lie sideways on the bed and curled his feet under him.

He began to cry. He cried for his parents and for him and for Petunia. He cried for everything that had happened and everything that he didn't understand.

" _Master!_ " Kaa hissed loudly breaking Harry out of his downward spiral. Harry remained horizontal on the bed and removed the cloak with his left hand and reached his hand into the tank so that Kaa could climb on his wrist. The sudden contact of warmth was enough to halt the icy pain that was threatening to claim him. He spent the next few minutes filling Kaa in on everything that had transpired since Kaa had only been able to interpret the emotions in the room on his tongue.

The snake was doing his best to soothe Harry when a few hoots from outside let them know that it wasn't just the two of them.

However, Harry was too spent to do anything other than lie there. It was just one thing after another.

It was only the support that he was receiving from Kaa and his owl that allowed him to keep some control over his sanity.

Eventually, the support from his companions allowed him to calm enough where he was able to drift off to sleep for a short nap.

* * *

The next day, Harry woke early. He had always been an early riser and content with six or seven hours of sleep, but with the emotional events of the past few days he had thought it better to take it easy when he awoke from his nap the day before. Therefore, he had spent the remainder of the day organizing things since that didn't take much thought.

Originally, it had been his intention to start opening some of the books and begin preparing himself to learn magic – but at least everything was now put away where they belonged in his trunks.

His new clothes had been easily sorted and put away and Harry had made a mental note to write to Gringotts to see if he could exchange gold for pounds since he wanted to get some muggle clothing to help supplement his new wizarding wardrobe.

The invisibility cloak, along with the Marauder's Map, had been left in the library on the desk next to his sitting area. From there, he had arranged his books by topic since he wasn't sure about alphabetizing them. Finally, the letters from his parents had been place inside the desk since he didn't want to be reminded about the powerful and emotional things that likely contained.

But he would get to them when he was ready.

With all of that out of the way now, Harry got out of bed and looked forward to moving forward on things.

As Harry got out of bed, he looked around his room and saw his magical belongings and his companions. Knowing that they were in this together brought him a measure of comfort. Except that he felt guilty knowing that the owl wasn't named yet; he needed to get on that today.

He performed his morning bathroom routine and returned to his room. Harry looked around and considered that he might as well get breakfast and then he would properly begin his wizarding education.

He arrived in the kitchen to find that he was the first one up, which didn't surprise him. Since he usually made breakfast for everyone on the weekends, he prepared an extra special meal. It was more an unconscious act of trying to regain some control, some form of normalcy back in his life.

The smell from the traditional English breakfast had wafted through the home and beckoned The Dursleys to the kitchen table. It was a meal that brought people to the table and kept them there.

"Thanks boy, it looks splendid," Vernon intoned. Which for him was practically gushing.

Petunia gave him an appreciative nod before reverting back to her normally detached persona, perhaps even more aloof than usual. But given the previous day... Dudley, however, just dove right in after a quick, "Thanks mate."

They finished the meal in relative silence. Vernon was reading the paper and Dudley had his programs to watch or maybe he would spend the day with Piers. Harry didn't really know or care. Petunia never ate particularly fast and just focused on the meal. He suspected that yesterday had been very difficult for her, more difficult than he could imagine.

In a strange way he was proud of her for what she did. It couldn't have been easy for her to express her feelings on a topic that she had repressed for so long. He was just grateful for what she had said, and the rest wasn't really important to him.

Harry finished his meal and put his dishes in the sink. Petunia would always clean up when Harry cooked and vice-versa.

Then he headed upstairs and went into his room and over to Kaa who slithered up to his preferred position encircling his arm.

He refilled the owl's water bowl and left it by the open window in case she wanted water when he was in his trunk. But he was also aware that she was intelligent, too intelligent, and could _probably_ make it a few hours on her own and get water from somewhere else. However, it didn't matter if she considered him hers, he considered himself responsible for her – and he would always take care of his companions.

Then, he headed into the library compartment and was soon faced with the daunting task of where he would begin with his studies.

The first thing that he decided on was to pen a letter to Sharptooth asking him about what he needed to do, if anything, to exchange money into pounds. He also asked if the bank had something similar to his key to use in the muggle world instead of exchanging galleons into pounds. Harry figured that he would catch a bus into London on a weekday and do his shopping.

Finally, he requested information about his account: past investments and any other pertinent information that he should be aware of.

Harry exited the trunk with his letter in hand and moved to the window. The owl seemed to sense he had something for her. She flew into the room and rested on a perch that Harry had fashioned by removing it from the inside of the cage so she could remain in his room without being contained. He asked if she was up to a little trip and she hooted her enthusiasm. After such a long time from being in the Magical Menagerie, she jumped at any chance to stretch her wings.

"Please take this to Sharptooth at Gringotts. Can you do that?"

Hoot. Hoot.

"I will come up with a list of names for you to choose between when you come back, girl. We can't have something as extraordinary as you have just any name."

He wondered were he would get inspiration from to name such an intelligent owl.

The letter just attached itself to her feet as she flew by on her way out the window. He wondered again if owls had some magic placed on them to be able to carry things, as he didn't think that they had evolved that particular ability to carry things magically. But then again, he didn't know that much about magic. It could have been true.

Harry returned to his library and decided to start with _A History of Magic_ and settled on the couch to start his long road of getting acclimated to his new world.

Within the trunk, Harry found that he lost all sense of time. When he exited the trunk to get some lunch, he was surprised that it was almost four in the afternoon. He had been productive though, and had a list of names he thought were suitable. Ultimately, his owl would be the one to decide her own name.

He went downstairs and put together a sandwich for himself with some crisps. Harry also decided on a few bottles of water and an apple he could use while inside his trunk.

Once he was finished with the meal that he ate in his trunk, he contemplated the map on his desk. Curiosity won out and he opened it and pointed his wand at the center, like his dad's letter had said.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he intoned reverently, thinking about how he was using something his dad had helped create.

Nothing happened. He tried again multiple times putting his wand in different places and even holding it in different positions. Even re-reading the brief note he had read in his vault for something he might have forgotten didn't help. Ultimately, he concluded that maybe you had to actually be at Hogwarts for it to work properly. At least, he hoped that that was the case. Having the map and the cloak would be such a boon!

He continued his perusal of his _A History of Magic_ text until he couldn't read anymore and was pleased to note that he had made it about a quarter of the way through.

He left the trunk and deposited the used dishes in the kitchen and returned to his room a little after 6. By this time, his owl was back in the tree and had left a rather large envelope on the desk that was bundled with a letter that was addressed to him.

He went over to the window and called for his owl and she flew in to land on her perch.

"I have a list for you," he said excitedly as he held out the list in front of her.

"Let me know what names you like and which you don't, okay? If you don't like any of them, I will come up with more." He looked to her and she blinked her eyes and moved her head forward and down ever so slightly. Of course his owl could nod her head. What couldn't she do?

"Athena" He paused to let her respond. An immediate 'no' hoot was given along with a threatening stare.

"No to Athena, moving on," as he checked one name off.

"Ariadne," garnered a 'meh.' And another line was drawn through a name.

"Hedwig," however was greeted with delight in the form of soft trills.

"You like 'Hedwig,' then, girl?" He liked the name himself. Though the others could have been more appropriate given that Athena was the Goddess of Wisdom and her symbol was an owl or Ariadne, who could find her way through a maze and mirrored his owl's ability to find her target.

But they ultimately lacked her uniqueness and personality.

He then laid out some more water for her and put out some treats, figuring Hedwig would prefer to hunt at night, but deciding that she did get a reward for carrying that large package. He didn't know how it was possible for her to carry that - but could only conclude and accept that magic had something to do with it.

He turned his attention to the letter and opened it to reveal a very elegant script.

 _Mr. Potter,_

 _First, I want to thank you again for entrusting me to watch over your accounts – I will do my best to protect and invest your wealth. Second, that is a very noble owl that you have; she is simply stunning._

 _Now, onto business: aside from your financial holdings with Gringotts, I see that you have some property in your name as well. These wouldn't come up through an inheritance test as that magic only works with what Gringotts has on-site (vaults)._

 _The Potters only had a cottage in Godric's Hallows, but it was destroyed the night you lost your parents. It has been demolished and is now a memorial to you and your parents. You have my sincere apologies in this regard. I have pictures of the cottage in its prime that I can show you that are here on file. It was very quaint._

 _The Blacks have a property that still stands. It has served as the ancestral home of the main branch of the family for generations. It is located at 12 Grimmauld Place in the borough of Islington, London. The Blacks were also in possession of a house elf, Kreacher. Since you are the Black Heir, Kreacher is yours to command._

 _I will assume that you have never heard of a house elf and will tell you what I know. They are bound to a family and serve them for their entire lives and can only be freed by being giving an article of clothing by the head of house (you). That act, however, is seen as the highest form of disgrace known to them. They enjoy being subjugated and are fanatically loyal to the house that they serve. It is thought that thousands of years ago, the first house elves made a deal with a wizard to bond to his soul and serve him in exchange for the chance to perform magic, but that could just be legend. However, they are bound to follow a direct order from their head of house and cannot disregard it, even at the cost of their own lives. They cannot harm their master or any part of the family either. They will punish themselves if they feel they have insulted their master or his house by any manner available to them._

 _Kreacher is currently a resident of Grimmauld Place and, again, is now yours. He can be called to you if you speak his name. I will offer a word of caution, however. Elves may be bound by your command, but you must be specific with your orders and allow for no loopholes. They can also access your account here at Gringotts since they are tied to you but they can only take what you ask them to and nothing more – their magic won't allow it._

 _I have attached a summary of investments that the Potter Family has made in the past. Included in the dossier are my thoughts on how we could proceed. Currently, we are focusing investments in the wizarding world but could diversify into the muggle markets if you would care to. It is our practice to never invest more than 50% of the gold we have on hand, however. On the Black side, I would suggest the same, but would advise you to fix Grimmauld Place, if necessary. As an heir to two Ancient and Noble Houses, it will be expected of you to host functions in the future. Grimmauld Place would be more than appropriate. Kreacher could handle this and remove the necessary funds from either of the Black vaults._

 _You only have access to these vaults at your age if you use them for a dwelling. The law doesn't say that you have to live there, however, just that the funds can only be used to repair, establish, or maintain a home. The law was written to make sure that orphan heirs could remain in their houses if they didn't have a trust vault until they came of age._

 _As to your request about converting gold to muggle money, I have put a card – similar to a credit card - in the dossier. Using that in the muggle world will link it to your trust account here and withdraw the necessary funds. Just let a drop of blood fall onto it. Again, only you may use it._

 _I see that you had quite the spending trip yesterday. 3000 galleons is a bit excessive but you can afford it – though I assume you made some large-one time purchases that added significantly to the total? I hope they serve you well._

 _I look forward to the years ahead and in seeing the great wizard you will no doubt become._

 _Sharptooth of the Kobold Clan_

 _Account Manager for The Houses of Potter and Black_

 _Gringotts London Branch_

'Well that was something,' Harry thought dryly. It was a shame that he didn't have a Potter Manor somewhere – he would have preferred that. However, he did have Black Blood and he was a part of that family. No matter how much he wanted to excise Sirius Black from the face of the planet.

Well, he at least knew which vault he would take the gold from. It would be fitting for the vault of that traitor to be used to create a Potter stronghold for the future.

Harry was intrigued with his new wealth and now owning a house and more than slightly apprehensive at the thought of 'owning' something akin to a slave. But he couldn't focus on that right now, and so he decided to spend the rest of the evening examining the dossier and the investments that his family had made.

The elf would be dealt with tomorrow.

* * *

 **In editing this, I decided to break this chapter up. I felt it was too rushed the first time and this is more believable, I think. Hope you enjoy.**


	6. Kreacher's Tale

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading my updated fic! I think this chapter is much improved over the old one.

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

Posted 2/3/16

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

The next day Harry and Kaa had an extensive conversation on what to do with the house elf.

After some deliberation, it was decided to call this 'Kreacher' to them and see about restoring the House of Black with the House of Potter honor.

Kaa remained loosely wound on Harry's wrist as his human took a calming breath to steel his nerves.

"Kreacher," Harry called authoritatively within in room.

Kaa had suggested that he be firm and act with confidence as a Head of House should when dealing with the unknown. The snake instructed that this was how things were done in the animal world. In the end it was all about show.

Display was everything and a powerful stance was something that every animal could respect.

A distinct pop was heard drawing their attention to the middle of the room where a short elf appeared. He was short and stood perhaps one meter tall and his body was shrouded in a very old and dirt-encrusted toga. His stance was hunched, owing to the way in which he drooped his shoulders forward that also caused his back to arch.

Overall, his appearance was vaguely reminiscent of a goblin, except that his skin tended to be of a more greenish gray. The nose and ears were also longer and hung downwards.

Though, his voice wasn't as deep.

"Kreacher at your service, Master."

The elf bowed low in front of him and looked at Harry with an expectant face that was slightly crazed. It made Harry wonder how long the elf had been by himself for Harry had learned in his dossier that Grimmauld Place had been vacant for years.

"For so long, Kreacher has hoped that someone would come to claim him, to claim the House of Black, and now that day has come."

Harry had a hard time keeping how uncomfortable he was off of his face. He didn't like the idea that someone, anything was beholden to him in this manner. Slavery was barbaric and it disgusted him, but he didn't see a way out of it.

"Hello, Kreacher. I was informed yesterday that I was the heir to the Ancient and Noble Houses of Potter and Black. Today, I became aware that I owned property -"

He paused, not able to include a sentient being as property. Thankfully, he could think on his feet.

"- and employed a house elf."

"The House of Potter, Master? You are the heir to both? May Kreacher ask what his Master's name is?"

The elf's eyes were wide with the prospect of belonging to two Ancient and Noble Houses. It was almost unheard of to combine to prominent houses into one.

"My name is Harry James Potter and I wish to restore both houses to their Ancient and Noble status. I have Black blood through my Grandmother, Dorea Potter - nee Black. I want to unite both houses and bring back their standing, something that I have been told is sorely lacking as of late. I would of course like your help with this, if you are up to it."

"Kreacher will be most pleased to serve Master with this endeavor and anything else that he requires. It is Kreacher's deepest wish to restore the honor of the House of Black, and now Kreacher can serve the House of Potter as well."

Kreacher was beside himself at the thought of reinstating his house, no houses, at the top echelon of society once more. Maybe he would even get his head on the wall as a reward!

"Kreacher, I have to say I am uncomfortable with you calling me Master, is it possible for you to call me Harry, instead?"

"Of course, M-Harry. Kreacher lives to serve your commands."

Harry thought he would have to work on their relationship. He hoped he could at least get this notion of 'living to serve' out of his head. Though, that would have to wait for later. There were other things to get to.

"I understand that I own property, a Grimmauld Place?" He continued.

Kreacher nodded his head enthusiastically.

"Yes, Harry, Grimmauld Place is the ancestral home of House Black and has stood tall for several centuries. Kreacher cannot detect any property for House Potter, though."

Harry nodded sadly.

"That is correct, Kreacher… Voldemort destroyed my parent's home when he killed them."

Kreacher suddenly growled, catching Harry off-guard.

"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is evil, and poor Master Regulus died trying to stop him. Now, Voldemort has hurt M-Harry" Kreacher eyes drifted off and tears began to fill them, threatening to overflow.

"Kreacher, who is this Regulus?" He asked the small elf softly. Harry felt bad for the elf and could definitely understand losing someone to that monster.

"Regulus was the brother of Sirius, he -"

Harry interrupted and became icy.

"Do not say that name, he is a traitor and betrayed my parents to their death by telling Voldemort where they were – he was supposed to be their friend and my Godfather and he betrayed them!" Harry practically yelled.

The elf's eyes widened in horror at the thought of his Master suffering an even worse fate than what had befallen Regulus, because Regulus had known what he was getting himself into. But betrayal of this nature was something that a house elf did not take lightly.

"Yes, Harry." The elf finished unsurely.

Meanwhile, Kaa was doing his best to get Harry's anger under control, and was slowly managing at lessening his rage.

Eventually Harry was able to come around.

"Kreacher, I am sorry – I didn't mean to yell at you."

Kreacher was dumbstruck – did a wizard just tell him he was sorry?

"Kreacher does not need an explanation, Harry," he managed to recover.

"Kreacher is sorry for your loss and will do his best to serve your wishes for bringing honor back to both Noble Houses."

The elf now began to worry about how he had somewhat neglected his duties to care for Grimmauld Place go after years of being alone with no direction. Sure, he had been keeping the place as best he could, but there had been no pride in his work.

"Kreacher must confess that Grimmauld Place needs work. Kreacher's kind has always served The House of Black and Grimmauld Place. Without direction in the last decade, Kreacher grew despondent. Kreacher has been neglecting his duties, and is a bad elf…"

The elf moved curiously over to a shoe that was on the floor and Harry realized too late what Kreacher intended to do. However, he did manage to prevent the elf from hitting himself a second time.

"Kreacher, I forbid you to punish yourself," he said exasperatedly with his hand around the shoe.

It was disconcerting to see the elf fight against his desire to punish himself with the direct order Harry had given. In the end the order won as the elf let go of the shoe and dropped to his knees in defeat. What had Harry gotten himself into?

"Kreacher," Harry said gently as he knelt down beside the elf.

He continued. "I understand if things were left unkempt; we are going to change that though, together from here on out. Is Grimmauld Place safe, could I visit?"

Kreacher was confused at how nice his master being. No wizard had ever knelt down to his level. 'Except Regulus, poor Master Regulus' the elf thought with the utmost reference. Kreacher would do everything in his power to serve his new Master and defeat The Dark Lord, for he knew that The Dark Lord was not truly dead. Not with Kreacher being unable to destroy the Horcrux that Regulus had told him about, that Regulus had given him. The very Horcrux that Regulus had died retrieving. Kreacher was now firmly in Harry's corner.

"Grimmauld Place is safe, Harry. Kreacher would never let harm come to his M-you. The portrait of Walburga, Kreacher's mistress may be a problem but Kreacher will stand up for you and tell her what's what. Kreacher could take you there by 'popping' right now. Harry could tell Kreacher what he wants done and Kreacher could do it. Oh, yes he could. Kreacher also has something important from Regulus to show Harry about The Dark Lord. Kreacher has terrible information."

Harry turned to Kaa for advice on all of this.

' _Kaa, do you think I should go over tonight? It could help to get a brief idea of what work needs to be done and then Kreacher could do it. I trust that he would keep us safe, and if this is important about Voldemort, we could tell Minnie what we found out. What are your thoughts?_ '

The snake started to peak out of Harry's sleeve to peer at the elf. Harry moved to prevent the elf from being shocked.

"Kreacher, this is my companion, Kaa. We are bonded and he can't hurt you. I trust his judgment and have asked him what he thinks about all of this. Please don't be afraid."

Kreacher started at the snake but began to calm down after Harry's words. His master was a speaker? It was well known that Voldemort was a speaker but he treated his snakes terribly. Kreacher had seen that personally! This Harry was nothing like the Dark Lord and was very kind, from what he had seen. Kreacher decided to trust his Master and would have had no choice but to obey, but it was nice knowing that he had made this choice independently. He served willingly.

Kaa and the elf peered into each other's eyes, both searching for something that would help them either trust or become wary of the other. After a minute, Kaa turned his head and hissed mentally.

' _I think the elf's words are true. I think we should be cautious with this information about Voldemort. Ask him what it is now though, and then perhaps Minnie should accompany us._ '

"Kreacher, what is this information about Voldemort? If it is important, I may ask someone I trust to help us with this."

Kreacher nodded.

"The Dark Lord made a Horcrux and Kreacher has it at Grimmauld Place. Regulus died retrieving it and told Kreacher to destroy it but Kreacher did not know how."

He said as if that explained everything. His eye was twitching as he fought not to punish himself again for failing Regulus.

"And just what is a Horcrux?" Harry asked as his heart began to beat wildly with that horrible anticipation he remembered all too well from his dreams. A Horcrux sounded like bad news.

"The Dark Lord is not really gone as long as this Horcrux survives. Regulus told Kreacher that the Dark Lord put some of his soul into a locket that would make him immortal and keep him from dying."

Harry blanched and Kaa hissed at the knowledge that the one who had caused his bonded so much pain was not truly gone. This was one of the few times that Kaa wanted to bite someone.

Harry snapped out of his stupor and rushed to his desk and penned a quick note to Minnie.

 _Minnie,_

 _Come quick, this is an emergency. I have just received information that the one who shares something in common with my wand is not dead._

 _Harry_

Harry didn't want to say too much in the letter and he didn't know how to exactly spell 'Horcrux' either. This information was beyond huge and he felt time was of the utmost importance. He went to the window and sighed in relief that Hedwig was there, who, picking up on his worry, immediately flew into the room.

"Take this to Minerva McGonagall as fast as you can and make sure she comes as soon as is humanly or wizardly possible!" Harry pleaded.

Hedwig took the letter and sped off into the sky leaving a very worried and paranoid Harry unable to sit still or remain calm. He hadn't even eaten lunch yet!

Eventually, Harry took to rolling his wand back and forth in his hands hoping the connection to his core would sooth him. His cloak had been retrieved as well and put in his backpack.

It wasn't likely that anything would happen or that he would use these items, but he felt better having them in hand. It was a security blanket of sorts to his frazzled and worried mind.

The snake was focused solely on Harry while Kreacher remained torn. On one hand, he felt bad that he had made his Master panic, but it seemed that Regulus' wish to see that abomination destroyed was close to coming true. Help was on the way!

Thirty minutes later a disheveled and bun-less Minnie apparated directly into the room, one of the few able to bypass the apparition wards placed by Dumbledore over the Dursley's property.

She looked around the room immediately for any sign of a threat and had her wand drawn, ready for battle. Once the room had been secured, she looked worriedly at Harry,

"What's wrong, Harry?" She eyed the house elf with confusion.

She noticed that Harry was on the verge of tears and had run into her arms, trembling.

"Voldemort is not dead, Minnie. He's not dead!" Harry hands clung to her waist as if his life depended on it. Which wasn't that far from the truth if Voldemort was in fact not dead.

Minerva was startled but not completely in shock as she had recently begun to wonder about the possibility of his return with all the odd things that she had found out during her time with Harry. However, for the moment she was more concerned with Harry's state of mind and why there was a house elf in the room.

"What do you mean, Harry? What did you find out?" She needed answers and she needed them now.

Harry quickly explained how he had wrote to the bank and had requested information and learned about Grimmauld Place and Kreacher and had called him and the story that Kreacher had told.

"He made a Horcrux, Minnie. He put part of his soul in this locket and it is at Grimmauld Place and needs to be destroyed. He isn't gone until that happens! Kreacher can take us there."

Minnie didn't immediately know what a Horcrux was but after listening to his description her face had gone white. She had to act quickly and needed to see Dumbledore at Hogwarts. She reasoned that Harry would need to come with her since she knew Dumbledore would want this sorted out as quickly as possible. It was rumored that Grimmauld Place was unplottable and she doubted that they would find it quickly without him given all of the enchantments that it was under.

She had to move quickly. The first thing she did was remove her wand that she had stowed and muttered an incantation that Harry wasn't in the right state of mind to discern the actual words. A shimmering silver cat with the slightest hints of blue and white erupted from her wand and turned to face her.

Minnie spoke to it, "find Dumbledore and Severus immediately – tell them time is of the essence and I will be bringing Harry Potter to Hogwarts immediately."

Then she turned to Harry and the house elf that she now knew to serve the House of Black, and thus Harry.

"Now, let's get you something before we go. It will take a few minutes to warn them. The staff is rarely at Hogwarts during the summer."

She conjured a mild calming draught from the Hogwarts infirmary. She gave it to Harry and instructed him to finish it.

Once the liquid hit his stomach he felt immensely better. While he found himself to still be worried about things, the edge had been taken off.

And his mind and Kaa were telling him that Minnie was here and it would be all right.

'I did the right thing' he was now able to think to himself.

"Harry you need to instruct your house elf to follow us to Hogwarts. I am taking you there at once to see Headmaster Dumbledore and Severus Snape, a Potions Master and Professor. I will apparate us to Hogwarts and we will get this dealt with immediately. Are you ready?"

Harry nodded. And took several deep breaths in preparation for this uncomfortable method of transport.

"Kreacher, follow us to Hogwarts – we are going to try and destroy the Dark Lord and honor those we have lost."

Kreacher now had a mission and purpose again and he stood tall for the first time in many years. Regulus would be avenged! And his new Master had made this possible, and from this point in time on, Harry would have the same reverence in his mind as Regulus.

"Honor for The House of Black and Potter will be restored tonight," he nodded and popped shortly after Minerva disapparated with Harry, leaving a thick taste of magic in the smallest bedroom of Privet Drive.

Once more, Harry struggled to remain on his feet and would have fallen over if not for Minnie tugging at his hand the moment they reappeared.

She was leading him forcefully, but not painfully, by the hand through these majestic gates that revealed a magnificent castle on the other side. Harry's breath was taken from him – he was coming to school here? He couldn't wait.

Kreacher had 'popped' right behind them and soon the four of them were making their way across the grounds and over a bridge that spanned a significant chasm.

During their brisk walk, Minnie was trying her best to tell Harry about this or that on the grounds around Hogwarts to try and keep him calm. She also managed to tell him how proud she was that he had stopped to think before acting, something which his father wasn't the best at.

They had entered through a large courtyard made of aged stone. Harry wasn't in the right frame of mind to make out too many more details. His brain was primarily at the level were he knew that fires were bad and trees were pretty. Soon, they met two men standing outside a large entryway.

"Albus, Severus," Minerva nodded briskly. "Thank you for coming on such short notice. I brought Harry along as I believe he will be needed before this issue is resolved."

"Harry, this is Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, and your future Potion's Professor, Severus Snape."

"Hello," Harry said weakly.

"Harry, my boy, a pleasure." The exceedingly old wizard extended his hand and Harry shook it timidly. He noticed that Dumbledore was wearing robes with the strangest color patterns he had ever seen. Psychedelic.

"Mr. _Potter_ ," Snape echoed strangely. No hand was offered.

"Professor," Harry uneasily replied. Snape was dressed all in black and his slick hair hung to his shoulders.

"And this is his house elf, Kreacher, from the House of Black," she pointedly raised her eyebrows at the two men. She had yet to inform them of what had occurred at Diagon Alley as she had been busy arranging things with the other muggle-borns and neither Severus nor Dumbledore had been in the castle.

"Fascinating," Dumbledore whispered.

"Kreacher lives to serve the Noble Houses of Black and Potter," the elf added.

"Kreacher was the one to provide this information." Harry spoke softly.

"I suggest we head to your office, Albus, this is very serious."

Dumbledore was worried but had several suspicions about what this could relate to if Kreacher was the one providing the information. He led them to his office while trying to point several things out to Harry in the hopes of making him feel more secure in these unfamiliar halls. He was disturbed by Minerva's appearance. He reckoned it was the first time he had seen her with her hair down. This was very grave, indeed.

Snape was lost in thought; he had mixed emotions about the Blacks. On one hand, there had been Sirius who had joined together with that blasted Potter to torment the living hell out of him because they thought he was a dark wizard.

'And look at where Sirius was now,' he smirked cruelly.

On the other hand, Regulus had been his first and only love. Lily had helped him come to terms with being a gay wizard. Lily had helped him with many things. Being gay was less of a taboo in the wizarding world than in the muggle world – but only because of the importance to keep your family line going. As long as you had an heir, no one _really_ cared what you did in the bedroom. Besides, there were other ways to have children. They could do magic, after all. It just wasn't seen as proper to some of the older families.

Regulus and him had developed these feelings towards another at Hogwarts, which was partly why Sirius was so antagonistic towards him; he didn't want Snape to corrupt his younger brother. That was so far from the truth! Regulus, if anything, kept Severus away from some of the darker aspects of magic. And so did Lily, until he had lost control of his emotions because of James and Sirius and had called her something that was unforgivable during a particularly bad time in his life. That had left a huge scar on his heart. The fact that he had indirectly caused her death had left an even bigger one, though he had tried his best to save her once he _knew_.

He was distraught and at that time his relationship with Regulus was being tested by their service to the Dark Lord, whom they grew to detest and loathe. They soon learned that what they had signed up for was a lie and were ashamed with what they had done. It was a very deep regret that filled his heart and he had vowed to make things right. One night they had decided to take an Unbreakable Vow with each other to bring down the Dark Lord from the inside, to redeem themselves. That was when he had contacted Dumbledore, to offer to spy. He told Albus everything that he could think of. But then, some time after Dumbledore and him had staged the prophecy in The Hogs Head, _everything_ changed.

Regulus had come back to their home distraught and had kissed Severus passionately and they had made love, unbeknownst to him for the last time. Regulus told him that he would always love him and that he had found out something about the Dark Lord that needed to be taken care of immediately. He told Snape he would set it right but that he had to go. Regulus had told Snape that no matter what happened he would always love him and that he needed to live, but he disapparated before Severus could stop him. He had never seen him again. Wherever Regulus was going, the vow must have commanded him to act.

And then Lily died. Murdered by the Dark Lord. He _almost_ didn't care that the Dark Lord had died and he hadn't even noticed when the vow released him from his oath. His thoughts were so preoccupied with what he had lost. Severus tried to force himself to live by Regulus' final words… But he was a shell of his former self; He had become hollow.

Coming back to the present, he turned to look at the boy, whose piercing green eyes were just like his mother's and it drove him further into his melancholy. He had wronged this boy's mother, just as his father had wronged him. But Severus would make it right, vow or not.

They arrived in the Headmaster's office and Minerva led Harry to a chair, which Kreacher positioned himself behind, protectively. Minerva took the seat next to Harry while Severus leaned against the wall, wondering if this had anything to do with what Regulus had found out. He had never seen Minerva so on edge. Even Dumbledore looked tense.

Dumbledore sat behind his desk and looked the part of a wise and powerful leader. Harry could see why Minnie had brought him here. He could feel this warmth emanating from him. Little did he know that both Severus and Dumbledore could feel the same coming from him, only stronger.

However, Snape's face blanched when he saw Kaa stick his head out of Harry's sleeve.

Since Kaa had felt that he was among people that would protect Harry – and he was very worried about himself – he wanted to visibly remind Harry that he was there.

Meanwhile, Dumbledore noticed Severus' face in regards to the snake and his face hardened. Albus assumed that Severus knew exactly what kind of snake it was and it terrified him. They were both dumbfounded, however, that Minerva's hand was so close to it as if she didn't care. She clearly knew a snake was there.

"Mr. Potter," Snape spoke quietly, fearful that any sudden movement would cause the boy's death.

Harry looked up curiously at the softness in which Snape had spoken his name, his demeanor suddenly very different.

"Are you aware that you have a snake on your arm, a very poisonous and deadly snake?"

Minerva suddenly understood why the mood in the room had changed so drastically. The fact that Harry had a snake was not even among the top five things on her list of Harry's top shock-inducing moments. 'These two are in for a doozy,' she thought, briefly forgetting about the reason they were here.

"Oh, you mean Kaa?" Harry looked at Minnie curiously who understood what he was thinking.

"I haven't told them yet Harry, I haven't seen them."

"You knew about this Minerva!" Snape hissed in a low voice. He was shocked! "Do you not know what kind of snake this is?"

Harry looked curiously at the exchange when he noticed that Minerva was now realizing that perhaps something had slipped past her.

"Kaa is an Egyptian Apophis Asp, Professor Snape. I got him yesterday in Diagon Alley." Harry supplied.

"That is very grave news, I'm afraid," Dumbledore spoke up – his hand stroking his white beard contemplatively before he asked. "Harry, why did you get a snake? If I may ask, they aren't the more usual pets."

Severus looked at Albus, his eyes twitching ever so slightly. 'We need to get that snake away from here, not ask the boy why he got it,' Snape thought.

Harry didn't like the idea of someone calling Kaa a pet; he was no such thing. He was his companion; his bonded one, and his friend!

Minerva thought this reaction between Albus and Severus was interesting, but she wanted to get back to what kind of snake Kaa was. She hoped that Harry had been honest about him not being able to bite anyone without his permission.

He looked nervously at Minnie, who nodded for him to continue.

"Because I am a parselmouth and wanted a friend to talk to. I only learned I was able to do this yesterday and who wouldn't want to be able to speak with an animal, " _especially one as noble and wise as this_ ", he finished as he slipped into parseltongue and rubbed Kaa's head reverently. A pleasing hiss was soon heard.

Snape's eyes were now twitching uncontrollably, and Dumbledore didn't look that far behind him. Well, maybe not pleasing to everyone.

Minerva would have enjoyed this display at any other time but she knew that whatever was causing them to act this way was probably very serious. She had to consciously refrain from moving her hand away from Kaa.

Harry continued, "He bit me -"

Snape stopped breathing.

"- and I named him and we bonded."

Snape made a very weird sound that was half of an uncomfortable laugh and a shocked gasp together.

"You bonded with an Apophis Asp?" he echoed as he felt the sudden need to sit down and slid down the wall.

"I knew he was poisonous and I asked Minnie – Minerva, sorry, and told her that he can't bite anyone unless I tell him too, and that you would make an antidote just in case."

He finished looking at Snape, who was pinching the bridge of his nose with his eyes closed.

Harry could see about the concern over Kaa being venomous but with an antidote and the fact that Kaa wouldn't bite, he felt they were acting overly dramatic. Snakes had a really bad rap in the wizarding world, apparently.

The other three were so lost in thought that they didn't even notice Harry's use of 'Minnie.'

"Harry," Dumbledore joined in this time quietly.

"There is no cure to a bite from an Apophis Asp. Their poison is one that kills the soul – there is no coming back from that."

He knew of the asp but not what the species had looked like.

Minerva gasped.

Harry was stunned. ' _did Kaa know his poison could do that_ ,' he thought unintentionally in parseltongue.

' _Yes, Harry_ ' – Kaa replied. ' _But I told you the truth, we do not like to bite and prefer not to and this way no speaker could command me otherwise. I_ _ **know**_ _your soul – you would not ask this of me._ '

"Oh," Harry realized with wide eyes – suddenly glad that he did bond with Kaa and feeling slightly honored by his praise.

"Professors, Kaa just told me one of the reasons he wanted to bond with me. This way, another speaker, though I am told they are rare, could not use him for that purpose. He bonded with me because he knew that I would never ask him to do that. He wanted to be protected from someone abusing his power."

That was certainly a good reason and one that everyone in that room understood. Precautions would have to be taken because the snake would simply have to come to Hogwarts because of the bond, but they felt much, much better about it than before.

' _There is one more thing, Harry, that I feel I should tell you. While we have that gift of death – we also have one of life. But can only use it once as it costs us our lives. You see, the Egyptian Sun God, Ra, would protect the sun – his power and soul, the source of light for all life. Every night he would guide the sun under the earth and fought with Apophis, or Apep, a giant serpent that would try and steal this sun from Ra. Every night they would battle and Ra would emerge victorious as he protected the sun and, with that, all life. That legend began because of my kind. We can take the soul from someone, but we can also give it back. But just once, we can bring someone recently killed back to life. I would use this for you, my companion. I fear now that things are changed with this Horcrux business and would see you live – if I could help it._ '

Tears started flowing from Harry's eyes as he was beyond touched by Kaa's words. Minerva grabbed his shoulder and looked at him concernedly. Harry then relayed what Kaa had just spoken to him to the others while lovingly stroking his scales.

There were tears in everyone's eyes; that was the ultimate gift. Dumbledore and Snape were both glad that Harry had this protection, and hoped it was never needed because Harry would be deprived of someone else who had given their life for him.

They sat in silence for several moments before Severus was drawn out of his reverie by remembering they were there for another reason.

"Harry, now that we have dealt with this – though we will have to provide a precaution for those students at Hogwarts, even though… Kaa… would not bite – what information did you have for us?"

"Oh, Voldemort made a Horcrux," he deadpanned.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think: good or bad!**


	7. Horcruxes

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for sticking with this! Second, I love Snape (even more if that is possible since Alan Rickman died) and wanted his character to do more than what happened in the books, which had to be an incredibly hard life. Third, Dumbledore has always confused me and I took a stab at trying to explain some of his actions.

I know that the pace seems quick (making Harry aware of the Horcrux issue early), but it fits with the 200k+ that is yet to come.

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

Dumbledore remained seated at his desk with his mouth hanging open. Though, since he found that he was unable to speak, he soon closed it to try and hide his shock.

The man had known that Voldemort was not truly gone because of the prophecy. The _real_ prophecy, the one that he and only he had heard. Naturally, it was only a matter of time before the Dark Lord made himself known again.

But this: a Horcrux? What had Tom Riddle been thinking!

In the years since Voldemort's downfall, Albus had tried to think of ways in which Voldemort could have extended or protected his life by using various dark rituals because he knew without a doubt that a second war was coming.

Ultimately, he had concluded that he was wasting his time in trying to figure out what Tom had done since the only thing that mattered was that the man would return.

But one thing that he had thought that he had ruled out completely was Horcruxes. Albus had assumed that a Horcrux would have been beneath Voldemort since the original part of him not in the Horcrux could still die; thus, he wouldn't truly be immortal because there was no link between the soul in the Horcrux and the soul that still resided in Tom's body.

Had Tom misinterpreted something from the ancient texts? Or Merlin help them if Tom _had_ anchored his soul to this world using some new magic of his own creation.

That was a scary thought, and one that Albus couldn't quite focus on.

All he could do was focus on the likely facts in front of him at this point.

Albus took a deep breath and settled himself, he had been preparing years for this moment that would set the second half of the prophecy in motion.

After he was calmer, he started to reflect on the obvious truths in front of him. Since Albus had a reasonable guess at the person that Tom was, he knew it was likely that the man would have believed in making more than one Horcrux.

Therefore, it was likely that even if they sought out and destroyed every Horcrux that they could, it was almost a guarantee that one – whether known or unknown – would slip through their fingers and allow the Dark Lord to return.

Which was frightening. But they had to try and get as many as possible because, Merlin forbid, two versions of Tom were able to rise again.

Still, there where other things to think about.

Like the fact that Harry Potter was a parselmouth! That was very strange indeed, as Potters were not known to be parselmouths. Where had the ability come from? Had Tom Riddle transferred some of his powers unknowingly to Harry that night?

Albus had checked the child over himself and his scans had revealed that nothing seemed out of the ordinary at the time. Harry had a scar, sure – but that was from Lily's protection meeting Voldemort's curse. It was just a residual mark now; it had no special abilities. The magic that she invoked would not have let anything from Voldemort pass into Harry, including parseltongue.

Even so, Harry seemed to embrace his gift; had bonded with an Apophis Asp in fact. That was certainly ancient magic that could tip the scales in the end – the ultimate gift from the prophecy!

But that line of thought opened just as many questions as it answered. Prophecies were fickle things. He had taken a gamble by tweaking and staging the prophecy; assuming that there was a reason that _he_ had heard it. Prophecies needed to be believed in, and encouraged for them to come to pass. Voldemort had needed to be aware of just enough to act and Severus' new status as spy for the Light was a perfect opportunity for him to be able to pull this off.

It may not have been the easiest decision that he had ever made – far from it – but he had seen a way to end the war, the suffering. And so he took it.

When thinking about the greater good of all, what were a few lives lost if millions, no billions were saved? It was a shame that Lily and James had to die, but Harry had lived! The boy even seemed to be doing fine. All things considered, it was much better than he could have hoped for. Though not a day went by that he didn't regret what he had done.

Going forward, Dumbledore would have to ensure that Harry was ready for the fight ahead and that he had access to a support network that would help him. It pleased him a great deal that progress had already been made on that front since Minerva was firmly in his corner, not to mention his bonded companion, Kaa.

In thinking about Harry's life at the Dursley's, Albus had hoped that the boy would turn out all right. He knew that it was Lily's wish for him to be raised there, as he knew the magic she would use required the proximity of Petunia's blood to continue to protect Harry should Voldemort have found some unexpected way to survive that night.

Albus had been the one to suggest the spell for her use, after all.

Just thinking about the boy in front of him gave him hope for the future. Harry seemed to have inherited the best of James and Lily: the boy was incredibly smart like Lily and had an easy-going and self-assured personality like James.

His musings about Harry's parents were interrupted with questions that centered on the location of James' invisibility cloak. Having access to such a magical object would no doubt protect Harry with his trials ahead.

The cloak had always interested Albus, because a true cloak of invisibility was incredibly rare. When he had first learned of its existence, he had traced it through the Potter's line all the way back to Ignotus Peverell.

Ignotus had lived hundreds and hundreds of years ago, and if even a fraction of the myths surrounding the brothers were to be believed, they wielded magic that has long since been forgotten.

According to legend, three of their magical creations were the inspiration for the infamous Deathly Hallows. However, these objects had not been gifted by death but instead were products of a lifetime of dedicating themselves to magic.

The first was a true cloak of invisibility that would never fade and had been crafted by Ignotus. Another was the resurrection stone made by Cadmus that could call forth the essence of the dead. It was not necromancy; it was more of an echo of who a person used to be.

Albus had traced that particular Hallow down through Cadmus' line to Salazar Slytherin who had been rumored to make it into a signet ring.

The final was a wand with a magical core so rare and powerful that it was hard to beat, and when bested, its allegiance would switch to that witch or wizard. That elder wand now belonged to Albus and he had used it to defend this world from those who would seek to subjugate it to their will.

The Peverells, he thought suddenly! How could he have forgotten that? Harry was related to Salazar, though very, very distantly. Could that be where the Parseltongue came from? Some magical traits were passed down but only manifested themselves if the wizard or witch's magic could support it, if they had a strong enough magical core. Could that be the source?

Though, all of this was too much to think about and Albus had people present in his office. There would be time later for him to get lost in his thoughts.

Turning his attention back to the stunning revelation that Voldemort had made a Horcrux, one thing was certain in that the second war was about to begin.

As Albus looked out over the assembled people here – minus one or two that he hoped to bring in as time went on – he felt that at least there would be people to help him lead the charge.

* * *

Snape knew what had happened to Regulus. From the moment that Harry had said 'Horcrux,' he knew. He knew because Kreacher was here. And because if Regulus had learned that Voldemort had made a Horcrux, the Vow that they had undertaken would have meant that he would _have_ to act. Regulus had no choice but to go after that piece of the Dark Lord's soul and try to destroy it at any cost.

Now it all made sense. Now… he understood everything.

Regulus hadn't told him where he was going or what he was doing because if he had – then Severus would have had to go with him as well. To ensure that Severus lived, Regulus didn't tell him. And Snape would have done the same, anything for Regulus. His love had protected him and had even managed to say goodbye.

Regulus had tried to give him that closure but Severus had never really been able to move on. Severus was too stubborn, too dedicated to Regulus to let the memory of him fade away. Indeed, the only emotion that he now outwardly showed was in the form of a single tear that fell past his cheek.

Severus closed his eyes and just focused on the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest, concentrating on his breathing. Years of practice at being a master Occlumens were put to the test as he cleared his mind to get a handle on everything. He would need his complete mental faculties if they were to go after the Horcrux, which he assumed would be very soon. They couldn't take any chances in not going after it.

The silence in the room continued for quite some time, all of them lost in thought.

Snape was thinking of the past, while Dumbledore only looked to the future, Minerva was just thinking about when they could destroy the blasted thing already.

Meanwhile, Kreacher was quite proud of his Regulus and looked at his new Master in awe, who was still busy bonding with Kaa again over what the snake had just offered him.

It had been a very touching sentiment, though Harry had told Kaa that ' _in no uncertain terms was he never to do that for him_ '. Kaa had simply replied with, ' _we'll see_.'

Both were too stubborn to budge from their viewpoints, but ultimately Harry's curiosity with what Kreacher had revealed won out.

"So how does a Horcrux work?" Harry asked the assembled professors.

"How does it keep him living if his soul is contained in this locket at Grimmauld Place?"

Snape answered him, wanting to honor Regulus for what he had done in retrieving the locket from wherever the Dark Lord had secured it. The act that had no doubt cost the man his life.

"A Horcrux," he began softly, "is something that you attach a part of your soul to. It keeps the soul in your actual body tethered to this earth. If something should happen to your body, your soul would not die. I believe this means a wraith of Voldemort is out there somewhere. Headmaster?"

Albus would surely be an authority on this subject having spent many years pouring over old tomes.

Snape however became unsettled when Albus' features had dropped. This was not like the man.

"I am afraid, Severus, that what you have just said is incorrect – and I am afraid that Tom," he looked to Harry, "Voldemort's real name, may have been inclined to think the same thing."

Albus sighed and stood from his desk, walking over to the window that peered out over the grounds of Hogwarts. From this high up, it really was a spectacular view.

When he turned to face them all he both looked and felt his age for the first time. There was so much for him to say but he hesitated about where to begin. For years, he had held the cards so close to himself, only trusting himself to lead.

Now though, the years were starting to show. And he had no other choice but to entrust the fate of the world to those in this room. He couldn't think about the greater good of all while thinking himself above it. That attitude had gotten him into trouble in the past, but he still hadn't learned his lesson fully. Not with what he had done with James and Lily.

In the intervening years, he had had much time in which to contemplate what his role would be and now he was prepared to lay down his life if need be – if it made the world better. He couldn't have sacrificed James and Lily and all of the others without knowing that his time to be sacrificed would come. He would gladly do it, in fact, knowing that Severus and Minerva were there to take control of things in his place.

He had made his decision; it was time to let other people share the power. It was time for Albus to trust again.

"A Horcrux does indeed house a portion of one's soul; however, it is not attached in any way to your original body. I believe some of the confusion stems from the wording, which was a rough translation at best. A soul cannot be connected to two things at once; therefore, 'attach a part your soul' should have read as 'halve your soul into two independent forms.' Therefore, the Voldemort that Harry defeated that night is no more, gone forever."

He came around the front of the desk and sat on the edge, facing Harry and Minerva. All eyes were intently focused on the old wizard's every move.

"A Horcrux simply splits your soul in half and if that soul should ever find a body to possess or siphon the strength off of, it could reform into the person it was at that moment when that Horcrux was created. It is not a means to immortality but an assurance that part of you could start over, so to speak."

Snape could just stare, unable to process anything.

"This locket, should it get the opportunity, could see Tom Riddle reborn to his younger self." He concluded firmly, highlighting the problem that they all now faced.

Minerva had been through so many shocking revelations during the past week; she didn't even have it in her to gasp. She just let her mouth hang open, her wild hair framing her face.

Harry's eyes widened, although, he had kind of figured that something like this was coming. Luckily, the calming draught that Minerva had forced him to chug before they had come was still working, helping to take the edge off. And then there was Kaa, providing his own form of support.

' _Let me bite, Harry. Let me at him. I'll kill him_!'

Which helped as Harry couldn't help but think about how he had someone like Kaa to help him through this.

But there was more, for Albus was not done with what he needed to tell them.

"And if I know Tom, who has always strived to go farther and be better than everyone else… it is likely that he has made more than one Horcrux."

This bit of news was what finally pushed them all over the edge. This was the grave and very real situation that they now faced. Which was why Albus couldn't go it alone. Not at his age.

It was some time before the silence ended. Each person was lost in their own thoughts, their mind focused on the impossible task that was before them.

How many of these Horcruxes did Voldemort make and what items did he use to store his soul in? These were the questions that they needed to figure out before they could have any hope in finding just where these items were.

The task in front of them seemed very hopeless.

Albus, in this moment, hated his knowledge. For he had more that needed to be said, for them to understand just what they were up against if Tom had made more than one Horcrux. While everyone was still lost in their thoughts, Dumbledore had used the interlude to calm his nerves and collect himself.

"And now for what worries me the most," he began.

"What do you mean, Albus, there is more?" Minerva's brogue had broken through.

"What could be worse than what has already been said, Headmaster?" Snape quickly followed.

"The older the Horcruxes are, the younger Tom was when he made them. You see, for every Horcrux that he made, he split his soul in half. The Voldemort that had died that night in Godric's Hallow was his weakest form. His first and oldest Horcrux, whatever that was, will be the most powerful of all and contain half of his soul. Our only comfort is that his knowledge stored in that soul will be less, far less than what is stored in the others."

Now Albus knew the reason for why Voldemort had seemed to become more unhinged with each passing year. The man had kept dividing his soul in half and over time, he didn't have enough to keep himself together.

Though, this also raised the question about Lily's protection. It would not work against the other Voldemort's for her spell worked only against the soul that she had cast it at. Harry would be very vulnerable – so it was good that he had access to Grimmauld Place. The boy would have to live there now; there was no question about that.

Perhaps Remus could move in with him? Yes, Albus would have to bring this up when this Horcrux was dealt with.

Dumbledore then stood in front of all of them again.

"I am sharing this information with all of you because I believe the people in this room will be instrumental if we are to triumph over Voldemort."

He looked at each of them in turn, even the elf.

"The fate of the wizarding world _and_ the muggle world hangs in the balance."

He moved to kneel in front of the youngest member of their resistance.

"Harry, I know it isn't fair to put all of this on your shoulders. And there are things I must tell you later, when you can handle them. For right now, I need you to learn Occlumency to protect these secrets from others. Occlumency," he started before he was interrupted.

"Oh! I know about that, Sir. Minerva," he nodded his head in her direction, "gave me a few books about it as a birthday present. She said she would tell me everything but needed me to be able to protect this information as well."

Minerva gazed at Dumbledore, daring him to scold her when he had just done the same thing in revealing an art that, while not forbidden, did not have one of the best reputations.

But the Transfiguration Professor had already decided that she would not lie to the boy and would not be made to feel like she had done something wrong.

Dumbledore, however, truly smiled at her. If he didn't make it to the end, Harry would have someone in his corner that understood what was at risk, someone who would try to protect both him and the knowledge to the very end.

He also knew that Minerva was innocent in his instigation of the prophecy and the cause of the deaths of Lily and James. Dumbledore would pay for his sins, and was glad that Minerva was there. Harry may never forgive him when he learned about the past, but he wouldn't have to forgive her.

And he would tell Harry the true prophecy when he had learned Occlumency – and he had already ensured that he would learn it should Albus die. He would have to face what he had done and just hope that Harry could understand why he had done it in the first pace. But he wouldn't ask for forgiveness.

"Minerva, you did the right thing. And for that, I am glad. Harry needs you, and Severus," he motioned to Snape who nodded at the boy.

Snape though, had already made up his mind. If Voldemort had made more Horcruxes, it didn't matter that he was still under the Vow; he was committed to seeing this through. He felt like he was being given a second chance with Lily by protecting her son while finishing what Regulus and him had started. And he would protect Harry, with everything he had.

"We are all a team now. And now, Kreacher?"

The elf peered from behind Harry's chair and made his way to stand by Harry's side. Harry could sense how out of place the elf was feeling – perhaps it was because of the nature of the magic that tied the elf to him. Harry put his hand on Kreacher's shoulder, which caused him to flinch slightly.

"It's okay, Kreacher, I think Headmaster Dumbledore would like to hear about this locket. If we are to destroy it, we need to know what we are up against. For Regulus," Harry added for encouragement.

He saw a bit of himself in the elf.

'Suddenly being put in a situation that made you feel like a fish out of water would be unnerving for anyone,' Harry thought.

He would try and be there for his elf, the way that Minerva and Kaa were there for him.

Severus noted the way in which Harry had said Regulus' name as if it were holy, sacred.

"Yes, Harry."

The elf took a deep breath; he would never forget that night that they had retrieved the Horcrux and didn't need to take much time to begin his tale.

"One night, Regulus came to Kreacher, saying that the Dark Lord required a house elf. Regulus asked Kreacher if he would help to defeat the Dark Lord with him. Regulus had told Kreacher all of the horrible things that had been happening because of Voldemort and that he wanted to stop him. How could Kreacher say no to that? Kreacher would do anything for Regulus, bond or no bond. The Dark Lord took Kreacher to this cave by the ocean. It was well protected and the Dark Lord cast many enchantments and within this cave was a lake with an island of rock in the center. The lake's bottom was filled with inferi, but Kreacher didn't know this at the time. The Dark Lord wanted to test his protections, so he made Kreacher drink this awful substance on the island. Made Kreacher relive his very worst fears. The Dark Lord laughed at Kreacher, 'how pathetic,' he had called him.

The Dark Lord dropped this locket in a basin and filled it with more liquid. Then the Dark Lord left to leave Kreacher on that island – sure that the drink would kill him or the army of inferi that were ascending from their watery graves would finish him off. But Regulus had given Kreacher a way out. We had arranged this before hand, should the Dark Lord strand Kreacher. Kreacher had been instructed to return home if and only if certain conditions were met. Kreacher came to Regulus and was better because he had been ordered to become better. As Kreacher cannot disobey the commands of his Master if he is able, Kreacher's magic neutralized that poison. Kreacher told Regulus all about what had happened in the cave. Regulus knew what the potion was. Told Kreacher it was very rare and very difficult to produce. But as long as the potion was drunk near the source, the drinker would relive their worst fears. Dementor's blood it was and was far more potent than just being in their presence. The Dark Lord had chained a Dementor to the ceiling right above the basin and charmed the liquid so that the locket could be removed only if all of the liquid had been drunk."

The elf paused. The next part was the hardest.

"Regulus asked Kreacher everything he could remember about the locket. Kreacher told him that it was dark magic – an abomination. Kreacher could feel the bit of soul in it, but did not know what it was. Kreacher told Regulus what he had felt… Regulus looked triumphant for a moment and then looked like all life had been taken from his eyes.

Kreacher asked Regulus what was wrong and Regulus told him that he needed a few hours but that he wanted Kreacher to be ready to take him back to that cave when he returned. Kreacher pleaded with Regulus – asking him not to go back. But Regulus ordered it. Saying that our lives were worth that of the Dark Lord's soul. He said he needed to say goodbye to someone, told me to not say a word to anyone, and left. When…"

Kreacher was interrupted by Snape falling to the floor, as Severus' legs were unable to support him anymore. Tears were flowing freely from his eyes. Nobody knew what to do.

Severus channeled some of Regulus' bravery. It was time that the others knew about Him and Regulus. If Regulus was brave enough to die for the Dark Lord. Severus would honor that among those he counted as friends.

"Regulus came to say goodbye to me… We had made an Unbreakable Vow to do anything in our power to destroy the Dark Lord to make up for our sins."

He looked at Harry who he had locked eyes with, unable to focus on anything else.

Harry knew that Severus must had done something bad, something unforgivable, to look at him like that. But Harry didn't care about that – he couldn't. This man was breaking in front of him. Whatever he did, he had made up for it. When Harry found out, he would remember this. He had already forgiven Snape and could see that he had more than atoned for his sin by what he had lost.

"What is an Unbreakable Vow?" Harry asked softly, suspecting that if magic was involved it was very serious.

Dumbledore was the only one in the proper frame of mind to answer.

"An Unbreakable Vow is ancient magic, Harry. It is a promise that if broken causes death to the one that made it. It is very serious and not to be taken lightly. I suspect that is why Regulus acted the way he did that night?" His attention finished on Snape.

Snape nodded slowly as Harry closed his eyes. What had Snape done that he was willing to repent for with his own death? He had to have been truly sorry. It only made his position on forgiving Snape stronger. He could see that Snape had tried, had felt it in his eyes. Snape was trying to do the right thing and Harry silently gave him his respect.

"Kreacher, I don't want to know the rest – I can't. Regulus obviously got it if it is at Grimmauld Place. I just wish to destroy it, for him." Snape put his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

Kreacher looked at Harry as if he really needed to say something and needed permission to finish speaking.

"Speak Kreacher, what do you want to say? Is it important? Perhaps you should tell me first," Harry said cautiously. He hoped that it would help Severus. He could see that he was in pain, they all could.

Kreacher nodded and went over to Harry and whispered what he wanted to say in his ears. Harry knew that Snape _needed_ to hear this.

"Professor Snape… I-I think you should hear this." Harry said solemnly.

Snape opened his eyes and once again locked eyes with Harry and nodded ever so slightly. There had been sorrow in those green orbs. Kreacher went over to stand in front of Snape. Harry moved over to the Potions Professor as well and reached out tentatively for his hand. He had gotten so much support lately that he just knew, when he had looked into Snape's eyes, that he would need support as well. Snape responded to Harry's touch and closed his hand around his. There were no tears left for him to cry. Minerva's heart was bursting at the scene. She would never have thought the scene in front of her was possible.

"Kreacher knows what Regulus said after he drunk the potion. What he told Kreacher at the end, before he ordered Kreacher away, before the Dementor's blood claimed him. Regulus said he was happy, happy to have known love, because he didn't fear death because his 'sevy' would always be with him. And he would always watch over his 'sevy.'"

Harry's hand was being squeezed tightly but that was the only reaction from Snape.

That was the only reaction from anyone. Minerva had long since given away to tears and sniffling, but Dumbledore could only feel hope. He felt bad for Snape, truly, but he looked around the room and felt hope. He had been wrong to keep secrets and hadn't trusted anyone since his friend Grindlewald had used him to further his own plans. Now he had people around him that he should have been honest with all along - people that he should have trusted more. He would strive to make things different.

More time passed in silence though the mood had changed considerably. Snape was a wreck, but you could see a small change from Kreacher's words. A small fire had been lit from behind his eyes, his very being, that would give him the strength to continue what Regulus had started. He didn't need the Vow to act anymore; he had Regulus' words to drive him. He had Regulus to honor.

Dumbledore roused them out of their stupor, drawing their attention back to the immediate issue at hand: they had a Horcrux to destroy.

* * *

 **Posted 2/10/16**

 **Thoughts?**


	8. The Locket

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, in going through this I am breaking up certain chapters to make the story flow better. The first few chapters seemed rushed and I am really focusing on trying to alleviate that!

Really satisfied with how this chapters reads now and I can't thank you enough for the support! It really means a lot.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

Harry and the group that Minerva had assembled spent the rest of the day at Hogwarts going over the plan to destroy the Horcrux at Grimmauld Place. Kreacher was instrumental with providing them a detailed layout of the house and where the locket was located.

Dumbledore also proved his vast knowledge on the subject when he filled the group in on how difficult it would to undo the magic of a Horcrux.

In fact, there were only two things that were known to be able to destroy a Horcrux: Fiendfyre and the venom of a Basilisk. Though, he surmised that Kaa's venom would also likely suffice. If his bite could claim a soul, surely that would work on a Horcrux. It didn't hurt to try seeing as how they lacked a Basilisk and Dumbledore was wary of using the former. Apophis Asps were so rare that it was likely this had never been tried before.

By the time that the following day came around, the group felt as prepared as they were going to be since they didn't exactly feel comfortable letting the locket exist for another day.

"Now, we are going to deal with this locket at Grimmauld Place, but before we do I would just like to go over everyone's roles again. Kreacher, I would have suggested that you go and retrieve the Horcrux but I want to be cautious with this. Therefore, we will all be going to Grimmauld Place. Kreacher can take Harry and we can follow them. I suggest that we apparate to the park across the street and then meet outside the gates of Grimmauld Place. Kreacher, what does Harry have to do to gain entry?"

"Master Harry will need to prick his blood once and rub it on the fence and then the property will appear and we can go inside. The locket is in a cupboard that Kreacher put it in when he couldn't destroy it. Because Kreacher didn't know how."

Dumbledore nodded and looked to Harry and Kaa.

"Harry, again I only know two ways to destroy a Horcrux, but I think Kaa's venom from his fangs would also work. He would most likely have to bite the locket and kill the soul that resides in it. How does he feel about that?"

Dumbledore had always thought of the greater good, and now, he realized that he couldn't control people as if they were chess pieces. They were not his to command. He could offer his input and suggestions but nothing more. He had to change going forward or he would be just as bad as Voldemort. Though his intentions were good, he had been going about things the wrong way.

Harry relayed the message to Kaa.

' _Of course I will bite that abomination. I would do anything to protect you_.'

Kaa reared his head and looked at Harry and fake bit the air to practice what he would do on the locket. He then made a face of pure disgust.

' _Though, I doubt the inside will taste pleasant – perhaps some mice after this would be nice._ '

Harry laughed, which was particularly strange given the situation. Kaa had a strange way of diffusing the tension away from Harry.

"He will be more than happy to try biting the locket, Headmaster. Though he does ask for mice when he is finished – he doesn't think he will like the taste of the locket," Harry said with his dry sense of humor.

He was still chuckling at Voldemort's soul being referenced to something similar to food that while edible wasn't particularly pleasant either.

This caused some of the rest of the anxiety to leave the room and light chuckles were heard from Minnie and Snape. It was exactly what was needed to prepare them for what was coming.

"We should get going then, we don't want to be out all night."

Dumbledore led them through the castle and out into the light of the day. They hadn't wanted to do this at night and preferred to attempt this while everyone was focused and fresh.

Also, Harry could get acquainted with Grimmauld Place and perhaps spend the night there when they were finished. It would certainly give Albus an opening for the conversation about his needed protection with Remus later on.

They went out onto the grounds of Hogwarts and through the gates that signaled the end of the wards around the school and Harry went over to Kreacher and held out his hand, before Kreacher grabbed it and popped them to Grimmauld Place. The others soon followed with apparition.

The street was empty when they walked out from the secluded park that was across from the impressive and well-maintained homes. Harry noticed that the street practically screamed wealth. All of the townhomes were huge three or four story single-family homes. He didn't think it would be this big and it was weird for him to think that now he owned one of them.

Kreacher led them to a section that was right between the markers for eleven and thirteen Grimmauld Place and instructed Harry to prick his finger on a specific spoke of the fence. Harry did as he was instructed and the moment that his blood touched the metal, he had felt a pulse of energy against his skin that he had since come to associate with his magic.

He could almost see the ripples as it sped towards the wall between eleven and thirteen Grimmauld Place. From where he stood, Harry watched with an awed expression on his face as the wall seemed to expand in front of his very eyes. It felt like the entire street was being stretched to accommodate another townhome that was more than twice as big as any of the others. In fact, it seemed that perhaps two or three townhouses had been combined into one. Magic was truly and utterly a glorious thing.

The others didn't seem to be that fazed with what had just occurred, however, and Kreacher led them up to the door.

Standing in front of the dark wooden door, Kreacher then instructed Harry on how he would be able to open the house as it had sealed itself and would only open for the Black Heir.

Another pulse of energy was felt that came from the very center of the house and responded to Harry's touch, allowing him to open the door and provide entry for the others. Harry noticed that opening the door had also healed the prick on his finger and all of the blood was now gone. He was constantly amazed at everything that magic could do, big or small.

Once his attention turned away from the way magic had connected him to this house, Harry then asked Severus if all wizarding homes were like this as he described what he had just felt.

Severus had said that very few homes remained with the types of wards and defenses that this house possessed because much of the knowledge of how to cast these charms had been lost over time. The Potions Professor explained that many of the spells were blood-based and therefore had been outlawed.

After informing Harry of just how unique this place was, he assured him that he would tell Harry everything about Grimmauld Place that Regulus had told him.

For Severus, thinking about Regulus wasn't as difficult as it had been before, and he took his first steps into the home feeling much better than he ever thought he would with being back here.

It still took some effort to pass the threshold, but he managed it with thinking about being able to collect some items from Remus' old room. Perhaps he would look into that after they completed their task at hand.

Once they all were inside, Kreacher attempted to quickly tidy up as much as he could to make it presentable for his new Head of House before they were able to turn the lights on. Though, as soon as the expansive room was lit, Harry had begun to doubt Kreacher's standards.

The elf had said that the house had been neglected, but Harry had a very hard time trying to spot anything wrong.

Everything was simply wondrous and Harry felt like he was in a palace. They were currently standing in a large parlor with a grand staircase to the right of them that ascended up to the second story and then kept spiraling upwards until it ended on the fourth floor.

Straight ahead was a grand ballroom that took up much of the space of the first floor in an elegant, open-concept design. Magnificent ivory pillars trimmed with gold supported the floors above them.

And on the left of the entryway – in a position in which everyone that entered would have to pass them - were a pair of portraits whom Kreacher had identified as Orion and Walburga Black, the last Lord and Lady of the House of Black.

However, the noise of their entry woke Walburga's painting and, although she had been slumbering for a number of years, she immediately picked up where she had left off and began to screech at the intrusion.

"Who dares besmirch the house of my fathers with their unclean blood? Be warned, this house has wards that can kill those forcing entry!"

She paused when she spotted Kreacher among them before turning up the volume of her wailing.

"Kreacher, how dare you bring people into this house. You will make them leave at once or I will…"

"Mistress Walburga will be quiet now, Kreacher says. Kreacher has a new Master, Master Harry – the Heir of the House of Black and Potter and he will rid the world of Voldemort and avenge Master Regulus!"

The elf was shaking his finger menacingly at the portrait.

'Go Kreacher', Harry thought.

"Who is this Heir? I demand to see him."

Everyone looked to Harry, who soon gulped. Kaa told him to be strong and be forceful and that he had nothing to prove. He was the Heir and the magic of the house had accepted it.

"I am Harry Potter, Heir of the Houses of Black and Potter. I will unite these houses to become what they once were and honor the family members that both houses have lost. For some have given their lives to stop Voldemort, and we are here to carry on their work."

"You are nothing but a filthy half-blood and a disgrace to the name of Black and unworthy to be Heir!"

Minerva practically had steam blowing out of here ears and Snape was seeing red at that insult to Lily.

Kaa was enraged after hearing what she had said to Harry and was spurred to action.

He slithered from Harry's wrist down his body and to the floor, where he soon began to grow. Everyone in the room felt a thick and terrifying ripple of magic as Kaa grew from one meter to over ten meters in length and his girth was now the width of Harry himself.

Once enlarged, his body had coiled loosely around Harry and his massive head with huge jaws stared menacingly at the portrait from over Harry's right shoulder.

Walburga's eyes had grown very wide as the snake hissed ominously at her.

Harry felt Kaa's powerful use of magic from their mental and physical connection and his whole body reacted to the powerful surge that danced along his skin, causing his hairs to stand on end. The lights in the house dimmed and an otherworldly, emerald-colored glow illuminated the entire room. Both Kaa and Harry seemed to sparkle at that moment before Kaa shrunk down to his normal size and recoiled around Harry's wrist again.

The small snake was quite content with the statement that he had just made.

The lights started to strengthen again as the glow around Harry and Kaa slowly dissipated.

Harry hissed at his companion, " _Are you all right, Kaa? What happened_? _That was exhilarating but tiring_! _How did you get that big_?"

Walburga's mouth was as wide as it could possibly be, while Orion was almost gleeful at the display of power from the boy.

Orion had loved all forms of magic and didn't even care how this boy had come to inherit his House. Whatever the case, he knew that Harry had to have at least some distant connection to his blood or else the magic would have never allowed him to inherit his title of Heir.

The magic that oversaw the inheritance of family titles and houses was very old, and could not be messed with.

Orion could only smile at the sight of the boy before him, who would serve as a warning to those looking to defeat their house.

" _That was my true form, Harry; the form in which I can take or give a soul. It requires a lot of power to sustain and I need to recharge if I am to use it against the Horcrux. It is far easier to do so if bonded, as I can draw on your power as well. However, I wanted that wailing cow to shut up with her insults_."

Without even knowing that she was being talked about in snake language, Walburga moved quickly to amend her rash and insulting actions. There was one thing that she respected and responded to more than blood purity and that was power. She was slow to realize that Harry would have had to have Black blood to be an Heir and needed to swallow her pride. Immediately.

"My Lord, my apologies," she said meekly, still stunned at his display. She couldn't even process the knowledge that he was also a parselmouth.

"You are a fine Heir and I acted disgracefully. I will help you restore both Ancient and Noble Houses in any way I can. I regret my actions and await your punishment."

Even though she was a picture, she could still _feel_ pain and could always be stored by herself in a dark room, forced into solitude.

Harry and Kaa discussed her apology while Dumbledore, Snape, and Minerva wanted to see what Harry would do next. They had been shocked by that display of power and had felt it brush up against them. But it made them feel protected and safe as Kaa was defending Harry and it showed. They didn't want to know what Walburga had been made to feel, as they were sure it was the complete opposite of what they had felt.

Kaa didn't like the woman but thought that she could be useful, and she was family. He would be keeping a close eye on her, however. His vote was for accepting the apology, for now.

"Walburga, I can understand your position on wanting to protect the House of your Fathers but I will not tolerate any slight against my mother for her blood. She was brave and powerful and full of love. She defended me from Voldemort. She and Regulus will be honored going forward as the Houses of Potter and Black will unite to rid the world of that abomination. And it will begin now as we seek to destroy his Horcrux."

That got a reaction from both Walburga and Orion that time.

The Blacks were well versed in the dark arts and their library contained ancient tomes full of magic that had passed from knowledge. Walburga knew that a Horcrux was a form of Soul Magic, but didn't know much more. Orion thought it was what Snape had described, but Dumbledore corrected him as well.

Soon, both Walburga and Orion had become even more irate that they had ever followed that mad man after hearing what he had done to his own soul. Both had agreed with the man in the beginning but as time went on, his policies stopped making sense and they had tried to get out of his growing organization. But it was difficult.

They had remained inside Grimmauld Place after Regulus had gone missing, hoping that the protections of the house were enough. They had lost family to that man and family was everything to a Black.

Orion broke the tension.

"He made a Horcrux? And it's here? A part of the Dark Lord's younger self survives?"

Even though it had been explained to him, he didn't like the thought that an abomination like that was in his house.

Dumbledore clarified just the grave situation that they faced: "We believe he made more than one."

"An abomination," Walburga uttered with a horrified gasp.

"What can we do?" Orion looked across the faces of the adults present.

Snape moved forward to speak.

"There is a Horcrux here – retrieved by Regulus and Kreacher. We seek to destroy it for good."

Dumbledore moved forward as well to stand behind Harry. He might as well take advantage of the current conversation and suggest the boy stay here.

"Harry starts Hogwarts in a month and will need to be educated as best he can. He needs to learn Occlumency and understand more about the Wizarding World. I believe he could also start working on his magic, especially if he is to come of age at fourteen due to his status of being an Heir. I believe these wards do not detect underage magic, correct?"

Orion and Walburga nodded in confirmation that the trace did not work here. Black children were always taught magic from an early age – though most children's cores were not stable enough until age eleven to really perform much magic. Hogwarts did have a reason for starting when it did.

"Headmaster?" Harry questioned.

"If I leave Privet Drive, will my mother's protection fail? Aunt Petunia said that Mum had wrote to her and said that her family would be protected if I lived there."

Dumbledore sighed and knelt down to Harry's level.

"I am afraid that your mother's protection worked only against that part of Voldemort that is now gone – it was only directed towards that particular soul, not the others that _may_ exist. I'm afraid that you would have no protection there."

"Oh – I guess it would make sense if I moved in here then."

Harry paused to contemplate things. It was such a big house for just one person – would they really let him live by himself?

"Would I live here alone? I would say that the Dursleys could move in but I know they wouldn't – I don't want them to be unprotected though."

Harry knew that Petunia would never move into a wizard's home. Maybe there were some charms that could be cast – if Voldemort did come back, he wanted to make sure they would be safe.

"I think that you are right with the Dursleys not wanting to move in and we could cast a few protective charms around their home. Nothing as good as what Lily did but something."

Dumbledore was amazed that Harry had thought of Petunia in all of this and the protection that she too would also lose. Harry was so like Lily in that regard.

"But you wouldn't be here by yourself if you didn't want to be. Maybe Remus could come live with you, he was your dad's friend growing up you know. He teaches at Hogwarts now, in fact." Dumbledore supplied.

"Oh, Moony! I know a little about him. There was a note in my vault that mentioned him… Would he want to though?"

"I think he would be overjoyed with that. He was very close to your parents. What happened to them and to you affected him pretty significantly. He wanted to wait until you were older before meeting you. Given the circumstances, he thought it would be easier if he waited until Hogwarts. But we can talk about this later, after our job here is done."

Dumbledore smiled at Harry who seemed to be thinking about a lot of things.

'Remus would be brought into the fold as well,' Dumbledore thought.

'Anyways, it will be good for Remus to get to know Harry again; perhaps it will help him heal.'

There was not a day that went by without Dumbledore feeling guilty for what he had done and the deaths that he had caused. Perhaps he was not fit to lead anything if these were the choices that he made. He would never be able to atone for what he did, but that didn't mean that he wouldn't try.

Severus interrupted by turning to the portraits and asking them to watch over the boy if they were ever not there. They were bound to serve the current Lord from what Regulus had told him.

"And we will help prepare him for the future and teach him all we know," Orion had said while Walburga nodded.

"Perhaps not _all_ that you know," Minerva spoke up with a raised eyebrow.

"The Blacks have a rather dark past, after all."

"Quite right, Minerva. But for now, let us remove one Horcrux from this world." Dumbledore turned to Kreacher and asked him to lead the way.

They left Orion and Walburga who were now talking heatedly amongst themselves over what the future would hold and what they would teach Harry. They would use all of their resources in protecting their House and Black Heir.

Kreacher led them up the stairs, pointing out the heads of his ancestors that were housed on the wall as they walked by.

Harry could only shake his head at the gruesome display and continue walking.

On the second floor there was an opulent dining room and kitchen that had more of those magnificent, gold pillars supporting the upper floors. There was also a large sitting room with a marble fireplace in black onyx with the words, " _Toujours pur,_ " in a fine gold script above it.

Harry asked what it meant and he didn't like what he heard. He asked why the Blacks had continued to live in a muggle neighborhood if some members had despised them so much.

"The Blacks were also very stubborn, Harry. They wouldn't move because they had been here for hundreds of years." Dumbledore said, providing the answer.

After a few seconds of thought, Harry instructed Kreacher to change the phrase to 'always pure in spirit,' symbolizing how he would go about uniting both houses. He was then told by Dumbledore that would be, " _toujours pur de l'esprit_."

Harry liked the new phrase very much.

The third floor housed the library and another set of living rooms and private studies. The fourth floor was where all of the bedrooms were located.

Finally, Harry asked if there was a basement.

Kreacher nodded and said that there were dungeons as well as a potions room that had stores of rare ingredients collected over the years. Severus, meanwhile, thought back to the many late nights that he and Regulus had spent down there in their youth.

Some of which he was very fond of for it had included several firsts for Severus.

Kreacher then showed them to a large study that had a small fireplace on the left that was framed with books. On the other wall was a window, one with a large round frame that looked out over the same park that they had apparated to earlier.

In the center of the room was a dark brown desk with another bookshelf behind it and two leather chairs in front of it.

Finally, there was an open area immediately upon entering the room that stretched until the chairs that faced the desk. Harry reasoned that this must have been where all of the important business took place.

To the right of the desk, Harry spotted a medium-sized cabinet that Kreacher informed him was for the sole use of the Head of House, and was where important family things were stored. It was also where Kreacher had placed the Horcrux.

The elf carefully led them across the room, and all of the adults had his or her wands held at the ready in front of them. Except for Harry, whose wand was stowed in his bag along with his invisibility cloak. Besides, he didn't know any spells and his wand would be more useful as something to throw.

Kaa was his weapon and the snake was perched on his wrist, ready to act and transform in a moment's notice.

On Dumbledore's count, Kreacher directed the group to the cabinet and they formed a circle around it.

With a snap of the elf's fingers, the cabinet opened.

Dumbledore carefully cast some charms on the locket to see if there were any curses or protective enchantments. Satisfied that there was nothing that he could detect, he motioned for the others to direct their attention at him.

"Okay, Harry, I am going to levitate this locket into the center of the room and I would like Severus and Minerva to stand on either side of him."

He motioned to them and they immediately nodded.

"Just in case something happens, I want to be prepared. Harry, I would like you to be by the door and in the event that something happens, you are to turn around and run as fast as you can without looking back. Can you do that?"

"I will, Professor, as fast as I can." Harry acknowledged the serious question with a serious response.

"And you should tell Kreacher to remain by your side and he can pop you to somewhere safe if need be. I do not know what to expect from here on out."

Kreacher moved to Harry's side in order to respond quicker while Harry finished mentally preparing himself for what was about to happen after his exchange with Dumbledore.

When the others were finally in place, Dumbledore levitated the locket into the center of the room and set it carefully on the floor. It had a snake on the front of it and everyone could see the rubies that the snake had for eyes. This was Salazar Slytherin's locket and it was supposed to be enchanted. Of course Tom Riddle would have made this into a Horcrux!

Though, Albus thought that the locket was suspected to have been in the possession of the Gaunts, the descendants of Slytherin! Gaunts. Riddle. That seemed to jog something in his memory now that he was thinking about them side-by-side. He would have to think more on this later.

Dumbledore told Harry to be ready and that he was going to try and open the locket magically since the locket was enchanted and the Horcrux needed to be exposed from its protective casing in order to be destroyed.

However, the moment that Albus' wand cast the spell, a bright red light pulsed from the locket and knocked everyone to the floor.

Though, Harry had been spared – but Dumbledore knew at once that something else was going on as he looked up from the floor.

He watched in horror as Harry had begun to walk towards the locket and before Minerva or Snape could stop him a wall of shimmering, crimson light had trapped Harry within a magical sphere that contained the locket. No spell that they attempted to cast could penetrate it.

Harry had heard the most enchanting sound when that bright red light had pulsed; he didn't even realize that it was in parseltongue. Kaa was being called to the powerful locket as well and before he knew it a red wall of energy had separated them from the others. But still they did not care, inching ever closer to the locket. It was beckoning him to open it, to peer inside.

" _Open_ ," Harry hissed.

A bright red light pulsed again throughout the room, sending everyone crashing into the walls for a second time. Though, as the energy rippled over Harry, his trance was broken and he immediately became terrified at the unknown and menacing magical pressure that was suddenly surrounding him. Kaa didn't know what was happening either, but he was hissing his displeasure and readying himself to defend Harry.

Everyone watched as a ghostly form of Tom Riddle appeared above the locket and laughed mercilessly.

" _And what's this_?" He taunted with a hiss. " _A speaker? I shall be glad to possess you and become free!_ "

Harry's eyes had widened in fear, the voice from his dreams now made into something resembling flesh and coming for him.

But Kaa was not about to let anything happen to Harry though and grew to his true size to surround Harry and hiss obscenities at the wraith.

A brilliant green light surged forth from the pair to battle the red for dominance and neither Dumbledore, Snape, or Minerva could see much through the clashing of the colors that blinded them.

" _You shall not harm my companion_ ," Kaa roared as his fangs sunk into Tom's shoulder, causing the wraith to scream in pain. Kaa was intent on using his gift of death to suck the very essence out of this monster's soul.

Harry was trying to support Kaa's second form with as much power as he could give him, focusing with all of his might on willing the source of his magic to help Kaa succeed. He could feel the strain on his core as every second that he remained focus became harder and harder.

The colors that had been fighting for dominance suddenly began to change for the others in the room as the green started to outshine the dimming red. And soon the only light that shown was a pulsing emerald green; however it too soon became diminished.

When all the light had dissipated, Harry and a smaller Kaa were both lying on the ground, unconscious. Minerva was the first to get to Harry, screaming his name.

Snape arrived seconds later and began tending to Kaa, though his thoughts were centered on the boy. Dumbledore's wand was moving at a dizzying speed trying to analyze the situation and see if he could detect the presence of Tom or if his soul had been destroyed.

"They did it," he said as he slumped to the floor next to the group.

"How is Harry?"

He asked concernedly, shocked at what had happened. He had honestly thought this process would have been easier. He was scared to have almost lost Harry to the one person he was trying his best to protect him from.

"Ennervate," Minnie spoke hurriedly. Her mind was focused on Harry and only Harry. She would not lose him.

A small murmur was heard coming from the boy's lips as he moved his hand subconsciously to search for Kaa, becoming still only when it found its target. The warmth of the connection was immediate and Kaa slowly slithered his way to rest on Harry's arm. They were both completely and utterly spent. It had been far harder sustaining Kaa's second form when battling the soul of the Dark Lord than Harry had thought based on the previous display in front of the portraits.

Snape pulled a vial from his robes and forced Harry to sip. It was a mild restorative potion that would give him back some of his strength. He suspected that Harry was suffering from magical exhaustion. The Potions Master knew that soon Harry would need to eat something substantial and get a good night's sleep in order to recover. Magic literally took energy for casting and that energy was supplied by a healthy intake of food.

"You had us worried, Harry" Snape spoke.

His hand was absentmindedly running through the boy's hair. That was too close for his liking.

They should have expected it wouldn't have been so easy. They had mistakenly thought that Regulus had broken all of the Dark Lord's protective enchantments.

"What Happened?" Harry asked a little groggily. "Did we get it? Did we win?"

"We got it, Harry," Snape responded.

"Good. All right. Good." Harry mumbled, suddenly aware of how famished he was. "Have you guys ever tried shawarma? I don't know what it is, but I want to try it."

* * *

 **The Avengers is one of my favorite movies and that line from Iron Man just cracks me up every time. I think Harry is a little shocked with his near death experience and I am trying to inject humor in some places.**

 **Let me know what you think: good or bad! And thank you for reading!**


	9. Remus Lupin

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, I am splitting this chapter up into two parts because I wanted to give Harry a little respite from the action-packed events of the previous days. Therefore, this chapter will see him settled into Grimmauld Place with Remus – who is one of my favorite characters.

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

Posted 2/24/16

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

The encounter with Voldemort's soul had really taken a toll on everyone, Harry especially. It was a relief then that the next week came with a welcomed change of pace, which had started immediately after the Horcrux inside of the Locket had been destroyed. The house elves of Hogwarts had been all too eager to oblige Dumbledore's request for a satisfying meal that he had then summoned directly to Grimmauld Place while Kreacher busied himself with restocking his own kitchens for future meals.

The meal was simple but delicious and everyone ate their fill, each relieved that they had made it through without something worse having happened. Of course, Harry had needed to eat more than the others because of the energy that he had expended with sustaining Kaa's form as they had taken on one of the Dark Lord's Horcruxes. Once finished, he soon became drowsy and had fallen asleep shortly thereafter.

Snape had carried Harry's body upstairs and had placed him in the master bedroom along with Kaa before returning to the dining room and offering to take the first shift and spend the night at Grimmauld Place. He knew that both McGonagall and Albus had things to attend to the next day, but he was partly selfish in that he wanted some time alone to process the past few days.

After his colleagues had left, Snape braved the past and opened the door to Regulus' old room. The man was finally prepared to make his peace with the youngest Black's passing

Because Severus wasn't going to be beholden to the past anymore, as living his life in the manner that he had been wasn't honoring Regulus' memory or sacrifice that had ensured that he himself would live.

Of course, he was still going to have to take one day at a time and there would be plenty of setbacks along the way. But the important thing was that with each passing day it would get a little bit easier to come out of the shadow that he had been living under.

Once inside his deceased lover's bedroom, he slowly climbed atop of the bed and spread out with his face resting downwards on Regulus' pillow, and as he closed his eyes he felt a spark inside of him that he hadn't felt in a long time: hope.

The next day Minerva and Dumbledore returned to Grimmauld Place in order to work out a schedule with Severus so that there was always at least one adult around until something more permanent could be arranged. It was hoped that Remus would agree to stay full-time and watch over Harry. In fact, Dumbledore was almost certain that the man would jump at the chance to spend time with the young Potter and so they only had a little over a week to wait until Remus returned from his holiday.

Deciding on the living arrangements inside of Grimmauld Place wasn't the only work that was being done however, as Kreacher had taken up his old role again with alacrity. Well, with as much eagerness as an elf his age could.

After Kreacher had seen to restocking the kitchen, he moved onto helping Harry in making the master bedroom more age-appropriate. One of the bigger changes that he had requested - besides changing some of the questionable décor - was enlarging the window that overlooked the park. The view was very different from what he had had at Privet Drive and the openness of the park reminded him somewhat of the grounds that he had seen briefly while at Hogwarts.

It had been mesmerizing for Harry to watch as Kreacher used his elf magic, and a bit of Sirius' gold, to make all of Harry's requested changes. All that the elf had to do was snap his fingers and the changes were made instantly. Also, draining Sirius' account was the one source of money that Harry had no problem spending and had told Kreacher to take all of the gold out of that vault for upkeep and whatever else was needed for their home.

In the meantime, Harry had moved his stuff out of the Dursleys and had said goodbye to Petunia and the rest of the family. He told her that he would stay in touch but it was probably safer, without going into all of the details, if he lived away from them and minimized contact. However, he was adamant that he didn't want to put her and her family in harms way. In parting, she had reluctantly agreed to have some protective charms being cast on her home because Harry had been quite insistent on this matter.

Hedwig had also been brought over from the Dursleys as she had returned there after her flight to Hogwarts to warn Minnie about the Horcrux, knowing that Harry would return eventually for her.

Also, his owl couldn't get past the wards of Grimmauld Place without first being brought there by Harry himself. Snape had informed him that a very powerful anti-owl ward had been erected over Grimmauld Place that redirected all owls away and should therefore be taken down and repurposed. His future Potions' Professor had then told him that a weaker anti-owl ward should be cast to keep out unknown correspondence but with all of the other wards that had surrounded the place, nothing nefarious would ever be able to get in.

Knowing that his owl would prefer to be next to him, Harry had a perch set up for her in his bedroom and had gotten Snape to charm an owl flap in the newly enlarged window so that she could come and go as she pleased. It looked just like glass and functioned just like a barrier to the outside, except it was enchanted to let only the owl pass right through it.

In addition to the minor adjustments that were being made to the house, Orion and Walburga had taken to teaching Harry Occlumency whenever Snape was unavailable because of his need to prepare for the upcoming year and restock some of the potion ingredients that he would use. Of course Severus had also acquired some backup cauldrons as well, since there was always that one student who had a knack for blowing things up.

In teaching Harry about Occlumency, the former Lord and Lady Black had explained to him that learning the defensive mind art would provide a way for him to guard his mind if someone were to ever force their way in or surreptitiously invade. Harry would then be able to keep his thoughts private and therefore be ready to be told the sensitive information that the others had mentioned. But it wasn't just the protection that Harry would receive upon mastering the subject, for he was also looking forward to some of the added benefits that learning Occlumency would provide. Though, he wondered just how much better his memory could get.

With Occlumency, the most difficult part of the process for him was in learning how to clear his mind – something that Harry had never been particularly good at. He was always thinking about something and most of his tutelage so far had been quite repetitive and boring because he wasn't able to move on to the next stage of training until he had this part down.

Most of the rest of his free time was spent reading over some of his course books in the study. Even though he had nearly died in that room during his battle with the Locket, he had decided to not let it prevent him from using a room in his own house. If he was really going to usher in a new era for the Blacks and Potters, then this would be where he had to start.

In time, the rest of the house was also thoroughly explored. It was made easier by Kreacher taking him around and showing him every inch of the house. In the dungeons he had discovered a vault that Walburga and Orion had used to store some of their gold that they had removed from Gringotts before they had gone into hiding after Regulus' death. Given the protections that Grimmauld Place had had on it, the vault had been almost as secure as if it had been at Gringotts.

Ultimately, with the former Lord and Lady dying alone in isolation soon after - as they had nothing to live for - there was still a considerable amount of gold on hand. Walburga had described it as pocket change, but Harry was shocked to discover piles of galleons and mounds of sickles and knuts.

The fact that there was money everywhere, and that he had even more in the bank, was still difficult for him to accept at times; money had simply never been one of his primary concerns but he did his best to adjust to the new situation.

Though, it wasn't just the amount of gold that he had access to, for he was living in this huge house that had no doubt cost quite a bit to decorate.

In fact, Walburga had been quite insistent on spending an entire afternoon going through the house with him, guiding him from portrait to portrait and pointing out the history –and cost – of every little thing. But Harry had paid more attention to her narrative of what the artifacts and heirlooms had been through or represented and found it fascinating that some were hundreds and hundreds of years old. She had also filled him in on the storied history of their house and the various wizarding customs that she thought he should be aware of as they moved from room to room. It had been a tiring but illuminating event.

As expected, Harry had been shocked by the amount of wealth that was on display once he knew how much the various trinkets were actually worth. He reckoned that there was more money in this place than in the combined worth of the Black vaults at Gringotts.

For instance, everything that he had thought had been trimmed in a golden color turned out to be twenty-four carat gold. It wasn't even the walls and columns that he was the most amazed by, since there were plenty of other things that had been infused with the pricey metal. Like how the handrail on the staircase that rose from floor to ceiling turned out to be solid twenty-four carat gold as well.

Then, there was the multitude of large, colorful stones that decorated the mirrors and adorned various portrait frames and a part of even some of the furniture. Those turned out be rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and even diamonds! He wasn't even going to mention the jewelry that he had stumbled upon in the vault because there were crowns and tiaras and his mind just couldn't process the rest.

Again, Harry didn't think he would ever get used to his newfound position, not with the wealth that was obviously and proudly on display around him.

But he did his best to take it one thing at a time.

Aside from spending time with Walburga, Orion had striven to educate him on what would be expected for the future head of an Ancient and Noble House.

For the discussion, Orion had directed him to the study on one afternoon and they had spent the entire time talking in depth about his responsibilities. He had given Harry invaluable instruction on how to comport oneself in the various situations that he could expect to find himself involved in over the course of the next few years. Even though most were far off, it never hurt to be prepared.

Harry was quite thankful for this lesson, as he was nervous of what would be required of him at Hogwarts and the wizarding world in general. Harry didn't like knowing that he had all of these expectations suddenly hoisted upon his shoulders and was somewhat relieved that he would at least know how to act, but would have preferred not having to deal with them in the first place.

During their talk he had been able to voice some of his concerns to Orion, as Harry found him a very easy person to talk with. He also provided him very honest answers and was not a fan of sugar coating the facts.

The former family patriarch had told Harry many thing, but the most important thing that he always needed to keep in mind was to make sure that he was honest with himself.

Orion told Harry that it was of paramount importance to know one's own capabilities and where one stood in the world. An Heir, and most importantly, a Lord, needed to know in which areas he excelled, and which areas he was not as strong in. Orion had gone onto explain that a leader needed to have confidence in himself before anything else – because if a leader didn't have faith in his own abilities, how could he or she ask others to follow him.

In the end, Harry really enjoyed his time with Orion and thought he was the perfect elder statesman. In a way, it was like gaining a Grandfather. Something that he may have slipped into the conversation once or twice, and something that Orion had chuckled at and encouraged.

Harry had been given loads to think about and, quite frankly, _most_ of it made sense. It helped Harry and gave him the strength and reassurance to not break under the pressure of all of these added responsibilities. Which was something that Orion noticed and had been very impressed with how Harry was coping with all of this information and told him that all he could do was to take it one day at a time. He had even told Harry that he should wear the Heir Ring – which had a few ingenious protections.

The first added benefit was that it could act as an emergency portkey, for it could return him to Grimmauld Place should he ever find himself in danger. The portkey aspect was a standard safeguard that old families would use to protect their Heirs and had been passed down for hundreds of years ago.

However, wearing them had subsequently gone out of style as very few rings remained as the old families and their magical secrets had died out and newer families emerged in their place that were unaware of their use. Newer ministry regulations had also prevented the use of unauthorized portkeys but had allowed the use of those already in existence, grandfathering them in so to speak. Harry was told how to activate it and was thankful that it was something that could be said in an emergency but that he wouldn't have to worry about activating it otherwise.

The second protection that Harry had gotten was in the form of a charm that helped to protect his mind from attacks. The defense was very similar to Occlumency and would deflect passing intrusions into his mind but was not quite as powerful against a sustained attack by a master Legilimens. It also didn't give Harry any of the added benefits of faster recall or improved memory – which was something that Harry thought would be beneficial and so he would keep at his studies.

With the added measure of protection, Harry wondered if Minnie would now be able to tell him. Though, he reasoned that he should probably wait a little in asking her. One, because he knew how busy she was with the Muggleborns and getting everything ready for the new school year, and second because he had recently just learned a lot and felt that it would be better to spread out the information that she had for him. If it were anything like Voldemort and his Horcruxes, it would no doubt be a doozy.

Besides, any free time that she did have was spent helping Harry learn how to use his magic.

Although, she did make Harry promise to not discuss his advanced training when he got to Hogwarts. The only reason she was even considering this was because of the prophecy and Voldemort. The woman wasn't one to show favoritism to students, believing everyone should be treated the same and have the same access to education. However, this was a justifiable exception in her mind, and she would do anything to ensure Harry's safety when it came right down to it. And _technically_ , school hadn't started yet and so Harry was not really a student yet.

So far she had concentrated mainly on getting Harry used to feeling his magic within his core, letting it flow throughout his body and finally directing it out of his wand. It was only then that Minerva had begun teaching Harry the most simple of spells with his new holly wand, and first up was the light spell.

Harry had been quite enthralled with this, ' _lumos_ ,' and after learning had insisted on using it during the night whenever he went to the bathroom or to get a glass of water from the kitchen. Not quite satisfied with how infrequently he got to use it, he had taken to going all around Grimmauld Place with the lights off or at night, using his wand as a flashlight and had been practicing with increasing and decreasing the intensity of the light. What Harry didn't realize was that by practicing the amount of magic he used to alter the spell's output, he was unintentionally preparing his body for learning how to silently cast magic.

Apart from his education, Harry found himself constantly butting heads with Kreacher over cultural differenced. Once again, he had been dismayed to hear that the elf slept in a little closet in the dungeons and had ordered him to sleep in Sirius' room. Harry had even told the elf to remodel the room in any way that he wanted as long as everything that had belonged to Sirius was removed and burned, preferably in his presence. The elf was uncomfortable with his change in sleeping arrangements but Harry had countered that Kreacher was now family and would have his own room.

At first, he had also tried to designate working hours for the elf but Kreacher was most displeased at being forced to sit in his room, not doing anything. Harry had quickly amended that outside of these working hours that Kreacher was ordered to do whatever he thought was relaxing and fun.

Which meant that Kreacher was just working all of the time.

After that, Harry at least tried to console himself with paying the elf for his work but was again, brutally rebuffed. Harry really thought getting the elf to realize he was not an indentured servant was a lost cause and had been happy with just getting the elf to sleep in Sirius' old room. Though, he suspected, the elf slept very little and was never actually in the room.

Of course, Kaa was provided with his own space, and that just happened to be on the same king-sized bed that Harry slept on. Obviously there was no way that the young boy could possibly use all of it, even if he slept horizontally.

When he wasn't sleeping, Kaa took to exploring the house, and had taken advantage of this on some nights when Harry was sleeping soundly, but usually remained by Harry's side and was present during all of his lessons. After his terrific display of power by draining the soul of the Horcrux, Kaa had also found that his appetite had increased and was therefore putting away at least one mouse, if not two, a day.

The discussion between the resultant food increase had led Harry to ask his companion if it were possible for him to remain in his enlarged form but was told that it would take too much power to sustain and that his kind only used it when taking or giving a soul.

In fact, Kaa educated Harry a little more about his kind over the next week, and Harry filled him in on more of his past as well. So despite being comfortable with each other from the beginning, they were inseparable by the time that Dumbledore announced at breakfast that Remus had would be stopping by that night for dinner.

Albus had wanted to give Harry an opportunity to get to know the Defense Against the Dark Art's Professor before anything permanent was discussed about living arrangements. He didn't want to force them together but had a sneaking suspicion that it would work out.

Harry had managed to keep himself busy throughout the day, but he grew more nervous as dinnertime approached. This wasn't just anyone that he was going to meet; this person had been one of his parent's oldest friends and one of his future professors. And Harry really, really wanted the man to like him.

Because Harry was aware that there was a good chance that this man would come to live with him at Grimmauld Place, and he desperately wanted to make a good first impression.

* * *

He was fidgeting nervously in his room when Kreacher popped in to announce that the others had arrived for dinner with Remus in tow. As Harry was lounging by the window, he got up and took a deep breath before thanking the elf, who nodded and popped away. No doubt he had things remaining in the kitchen.

Harry gathered his courage and motioned for Kaa to slither up his left wrist. Kaa was visible against Harry's peach-colored skin, as he had chosen to wear a short-sleeved shirt that was dark blue. Harry thought it likely that Remus would have been informed about the snake, and if not, well best to get it over with. His look was paired with dark black trousers and dragon hide boots that he had splurged on in Diagon Alley. While he was looking himself over in the mirror, he made a mental note that he still had to go shopping for Muggle clothing.

As he left his room to go and meet them, Harry thought that while the house was much to big, he was at least somewhat glad that its size would provide him with practice for Hogwarts since he wasn't used to walking this much within one place. Of course, that only led to him considering that Hogwarts was simply huge and Harry hoped that his map still worked so that he didn't get lost. Otherwise, he had no doubt that he would spend a great deal of his time trying to find his way around.

Harry was descending the stairs from the third floor to the second when he saw that Dumbledore, Minnie, and Severus were all chatting amicably with an unknown wizard that he took to be Remus. The man looked older than he should have for someone of his supposed age and Harry surmised that it was due to the stress of losing his friends.

He had just walked onto the second floor landing when Kaa had hissed at him to stop.

' _Something is not right; I am sensing very dark energy coming from one of them. It must be the new one, Remus. I am concerned – it tastes powerful_.'

Kaa had his head raised and was flicking his tongue out, trying to get as much information as possible.

Harry paused by the stairs, which caused the others to finally notice his presence. As they were unaware of what was going on they stood and began to walk towards him; however, they slowed when they saw Harry take a step backwards and up.

' _What do you think I should do? Should I ask Minnie what's going on_?'

Harry asked Kaa, thinking that he trusted Minnie and she looked comfortable, as did all of the others.

Perhaps it was some wizard or magic thing that he didn't know about. However, after everything he was taught this week from Walburga and Orion, he couldn't help but act prudently

' _That would probably be wise, youngling_.'

Kaa had stopped flicking his tongue; apparently he could glean nothing further about this situation.

"Minerva, can you come here for a moment, please?"

Harry felt slightly silly and hoped that it wouldn't offend Remus too much. Maybe Remus would just think that Harry was nervous or cautious in general? He could always explain later, at any rate.

Minerva looked at the others uncertainly before acquiescing to his request and walking over.

While she did so, Remus looked over James and Lily's boy. His enhanced smell had made him aware of Harry's presence before he had even seen him, and he was the beautiful thing that he had even seen. The wolf in him immediately had thought of him as his cub, and was proud with what stood before him.

Remus had of course been informed of several things the others felt were prudent to know about Harry - including the whole Kaa and parseltongue thing. He had also been briefed on Voldemort and Horcruxes and his eyes had flashed yellow in response. His wolf did not like the thought of his cub in further danger. From then on, he was forever committed to doing everything in his power to protect Harry from that monster. No matter which form he took. On the spot he had offered to even provide extra tuition in DADA and dueling, which the others had thought was a great idea.

Meanwhile, Minerva was discussing things with Harry.

"Harry?" She asked quietly.

"What's wrong?"

She was nervous, and could only wonder what this was all about.

"Is everything _all right_ with Remus?"

Harry didn't know how to say it without sounding offensive.

"It's just that Kaa feels a dark energy coming from him and is not sure what it is and wants me to be cautious."

Minerva looked slightly nonplussed with the comment and her reaction let Harry know that he was onto something.

"So… what is it?" He asked, now more sure that there was something; however, he did trust Minnie, and thought this was something that wasn't widely known but would be innocuous.

Because honestly he just couldn't see Minnie putting him or herself in any unnecessary danger after the Horcrux.

"I am afraid it isn't my story to tell, Harry, but I can assure you that he is safe."

She paused not really knowing what else to add and a little thrown off by having this discussion so soon. She shouldn't have been surprised though, Harry was really observant. And he had Kaa with him, who could - no doubt - pick up on slight traces of magic that others would miss.

"I can also say that your parents knew and didn't care; in fact, I believe your father went out his way to not make it a big deal – though I may have disapproved about how he went about it."

Minerva didn't want to say too much but Harry was very astute and would probably figure it out in no time at all.

Harry was thinking at a rapid rate, going over everything that he knew about Remus and his parents from the stories that he had been told. He also thought back to the letter and all of their nicknames since those did tend to reflect some of the innate characteristics about someone.

"Hang on a minute," Harry thought out loud. "Does it have anything to do with my dad's nickname for him, 'Moony?'"

'Too astute,' Minerva thought. Her only reaction to Harry's question was a raised eyebrow.

'So, I'm on the right path.' Harry was thinking about how something with dark energy could be associated with the moon and some of the information that he had learned from his studies. He was thinking over _A History of Magic_ and _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ when it hit him; Harry would have been more surprised except that it took more and more to shock him lately, and perhaps Remus was a good werewolf. Certainly his dad had had no problem with it and he didn't see why he should.

"A werewolf?" Harry asked with very little shock on his face.

The brief change of expression that Minerva had tried to conceal was enough for Harry to serve as a confirmation.

"Well, if my dad was fine with it than who am I to judge?" Harry announced as he stalked past Minerva and towards the others, satisfied with his reasoning and deduction abilities.

Kaa seemed more at ease now too but wanted to know everything about the situation; for he wouldn't take chances when it came to Harry's safety.

Minerva quickly turned around and followed him and they soon joined the others.

Harry approached the standing group who had been wondering amongst themselves what was going on. Remus looked slightly apprehensive and hoped that there wasn't a problem.

"Hello Moony," Harry said with a smile and wink as he extended his hand to the man who had gone slightly white at the use of a name he hadn't heard in quite some time.

Harry had then wondered about the other nicknames that the letter had mentioned and decided to just get the awkwardness out of the way.

"So, if being a werewolf gave you the nickname of 'Moony,' what was my dad to get the nickname of Prongs?"

You could have heard a pin drop.

Remus had been surprised to say the least that Harry now knew he was a werewolf. He hadn't planning on telling Harry yet and was wondering how Harry had figured it out.

The rest of dinner was then spent in hearing about the note that Harry's parents had left him in the vault. From there, it was easy to see how the combination of the nicknames, Kaa's supernatural abilities, and his brief read-through of some of his books had supplied him with the answer.

Remus was astounded that Harry had been able to connect all of the dots and thought, not for the last time, just how much of Lily's intelligence that he possessed.

The rest of the evening was spent getting to know one another, and it was soon decided that Remus would be moving into Grimmauld permanently. The others had left a short while later leaving Harry to hear all sorts of wonderful stories and anecdotes about his parents.

Harry had then shown Remus the cloak and had asked about the map and that if it worked only inside of Hogwarts. Remus had told him all about how it worked and that he should keep it to himself and to only let those that he trusted know that he had it. While Remus wanted to protect him, he knew that James would never forgive him if he didn't let Harry explore the castle with his own group of friends the same way that he had; though the teacher in him wanted to take it away. Because Merlin help them if the Weasley twins ever got their paws on it! However, he did make Harry promise to not abuse it and to be wary given that he knew now that Voldemort was not truly gone.

* * *

The next day continued on in much the same fashion as Remus continued to explain how he had gotten to know his father and the rest of 'the Marauders'. A considerable amount of time was spent detailing the reactions that his friends had when they had found out that he was a werewolf, and even more time on them becoming animagi. Harry was astounded that someday he could become an animagus and turn into an animal. The thought of his dad's form gave him comfort and he wondered what he himself would turn into.

Remus had found it very easy to talk with Harry and enjoyed the level of intelligence and discussion that he brought to their conversations. He had been able to express his grief over losing Harry's parents and the shock that had come with hearing about Sirius. It had hurt Remus to think that someone so close had betrayed them and told Harry that his wolf saw him as his cub because he had been so close to him and his family. Remus had then hesitantly asked if Harry was okay with the idea of him becoming his guardian since he had moved out of the Dursleys.

Harry had immediately gone over to hug the man, reveling in the comfort and security that had been previously withheld from him. He found it quite easy, almost familiar, to be with Remus and he imagined that it was because of the fact that he had known him when he was very young. It was very similar to how he felt around Minerva but there were more parental undertones associated with Remus.

And the others were quite happy with how Harry and Remus took to each other and thought it would be good for Harry to have someone who loved him quite as unconditionally as Remus seemed to. Even Snape was glad with how things had turned out!

For Snape and Remus had begun on uneasy terms when Remus had first started working at Hogwarts, but Snape hadn't loathed him as he had loathed Sirius. Often times it was Remus who had tried to reign in Sirius and James and he had played no part in that foolish and deadly prank that Sirius had undertaken. Over the years, they had developed an uneasy friendship. They both had too many scars from the past to ever get on as mates but they had respect for one another.

Snape really was happy for Remus and Harry; he thought it would heal some of the scars that the other had. For Remus, he would gain something that he had always thought he had lost, and Harry would gain something that he never knew he needed. They would be each other's family and Snape could only think of how happy Lily would be to know that her boy would be taken care of. Remus would obviously protect the boy with his own life if necessary. Snape had seen the flashes of yellow in his eyes that signaled the wolf claiming him as his cub; not even the worst torture would make Remus betray Harry.

Over the next few days, Remus and Harry had even ventured into London for Muggle clothes, and stopped by Diagon Alley one or twice to pick up supplies that Remus would need for his classes.

Also, Harry was moving quickly along with his training and had successfully managed to cast the levitation charm, which had seen Harry practicing moving things up the various floors of Grimmauld Place while working on his control. Pillows were the items that he mostly used when practicing the charm, as they tended not to shatter when dropped from the third floor if Harry momentarily lost control of the spell.

* * *

 **I expect to edit the next chapter for this Saturday.**

 **Again, thanks and happy to hear what you think!**


	10. The Letters

**Author's Note:** Here is another chapter as promised. Going through has been a good thing; I have changed so much as a writer that I am glad to have this opportunity to improve upon my original material. So thanks for sticking with this because I think it is a lot better.

Posted 2/28/16

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

The timing couldn't have worked out better in Harry's mind. He had just been able to have an entire week at Grimmauld Place where nothing too atypical took place when Remus had come to live with him. Which was exactly what he had needed after the hectic start that he had had to begin his eleventh year.

The somewhat more settled atmosphere allowed Harry to appreciate Remus all the more and together they settled into a comfortable routine at the ancestral home of the Blacks, a family that had ended up having a large influence on both of their lives.

Also, Harry was finally able to process everything different about his life at a more reasonable pace while he was settling in. It was a marked contrast to the rushed nature of earlier events.

For instance, one day after a laid-back lunch with Remus and Kreacher, Harry had retired to his room and had brought out the list of questions that he had previously written to see how many of them had been answered, what remained to be addressed, and how many new ones he now had.

While reading through them, he decided to get some practice with the antiquated writing device that he would be expected to use at Hogwarts and so slowly worked through each question as he wrote out a response with his quill.

 ***** ** _Pet to bring? Says owl, toad, or cat – nothing else? Snake? Would be nice to have something to speak with. Should confirm you can speak with a snake._**

 _* Have an amazing owl, Hedwig. Also, confirmed that I can speak with snakes and that ability is called Parseltongue. Finally, bonded with Kaa, a powerful and deadly Egyptian Asp._

 ***** ** _Is it normal to talk to snakes?_** ** _Can witches or wizards talk with other animals?_**

 _* Not THAT normal to speak with snakes. Voldemort could speak it – awkward! Still undetermined if it is possible to speak with other animals, though Hedwig seems very intelligent. Possible that she can understand me and maybe Kaa?_

 ** _* Four houses at Hogwarts? How are we sorted into a house?_**

 _* Remus and Minnie described the houses for me. Ravenclaw is for the intelligent or those with the predisposition to treasure knowledge above anything else. Hufflepuff is full of hard workers and those that are loyal. Slytherin is where those who hope to further themselves with cunning and ambition get placed. Gryffindor is the home of the brave and the fearless. Minnie is head of Gryffindor and Snape is head of Slytherin. They did explain some of the problems within and between the houses. Remus said not to worry about where I get placed. One is sorted based on a hat that looks at a person's true characteristics and decides where that person would best fit. May or may not take your opinion into account._

 ** _* Did my parents have any friends that are alive now? Any other children that I might have known while younger?_**

 _* Neville Longbottom was someone that I had play dates with before my parents went into hiding. His parents were tortured into insanity after my parents died for information about were the evil bastard was. He is in my year and was apparently raised by a very strict grandmother according to Remus. Potential Friend?_

 ** _* Who brought me here? How did Petunia react? Does Vernon know about Magic?_**

 _* Dumbledore brought me there with Minerva. Petunia said that my mom wanted me there because of the protection she cast that is no longer good because that tosser made Horcruxes, which opens up a very large can of worms (see below)._

 ** _* Money? Gold? What is Gringot's (sp)? Vault?_**

 _* Don't think I need to worry about that! Have Potter and Black vaults at Gringotts. Did some more digging into the nature of money or gold and how the world works. Hogwarts, Minnie has indicated, is expensive to attend because of the supplies that are needed. For instance, a wand is very expensive and most witches or wizards only ever buy one. Some of the children from poorer families get their wands second hand or carry those that are passed down through the family (which may not work the best for them). Asked about how Muggleborns afford to attend and she said that only those from wealthier families are able. Which led to a discussion on what happens to those that couldn't afford it. In short, there are other magic schools that are mostly attended by Muggleborns since those raised in the magical world often do everything in their power to attend Hogwarts because of its reputation (and ask wealthier family members for money or become indebted to certain institutions)._

 _Have a new account manager, Sharptooth – who is a goblin and gets straight to business – also told me about my family vault that I can get into when I turn 14. Wonder what could possibly be in there?_

 ** _* Dragon hide gloves?_** ** _Dragons?_** ** _!?_**

 _* Dragons and werewolves! And many other things are real. All sorts of things. And vampires! Vampires! AND NOT ALL OF THEM ARE BAD!_

 ** _* Is it possible to bring a backup wand? Do they break? Can Muggles use a wand?_**

 _* Didn't ask because my wand shares something in common with that tosser and it freaked me out and the man who sold them was creepy. Wands can break and would need replacing (again, see cost discussion above). Muggles cannot use a wand because they have no magical core._

 ** _* Broomsticks? We can fly! Do I have to be a second year to buy one?_**

 _* We can fly and everyone has to wait until second year to bring one to school. Minnie said first years take lessons. Looking forward to that, how wicked._

 ** _* Pointed black hat, really? Do they help with magic?_**

 _* Unfortunately blacks hats are required for special occasions but do not help with magic._

 ***** ** _Books? Can we bring more than what is on the list? Last name of author and subject they write about are similar, coincidence?_**

 _* Problem solved because I have a portable library. And I should raid the Black Library. Who knows what is in there?! Author and name are purely coincidental, what are the odds?_

 ** _* Can Muggles see magic? What makes us magical?_**

 _* No. I also learned that there exist Muggle-repelling charms. So fascinating! No idea what makes us magical though._

 ** _* Potions? Is that like chemistry!_**

 _* Yes! And Snape is teaching! He seems like he really knows his stuff. Really looking forward to this class, as the potions our text said that we would brew are so cool._

 ** _* How far behind will I be? Is there a difference between those raised in the magical world and those like me?_**

 _* I will be fine. Especially with some of the tutelage that Walburga and Orion have given me. Not to mention very few people typically have training with their wand and I have. And I will have read the course books by then (hopefully). What do magical kids study before they go to Hogwarts?_

 ** _* Glasses, any way to magically fix eye site?_**

 _* Unknown._

 ** _* 'Wizard' health - would that explain why I hardly get sick? What are the other differences between wizards and Muggles._**

 _* Again unknown. Remus did say there was a healer/nurse there. Guess I will find out._

 ** _* Wizard suitcases - how will I carry all of these? Can we have things shipped to Hogwarts?_**

 _* Got a great trunk. And a library. Muahahaha._

 _New Questions/Observations:_

 _* Have a very powerful companion in Kaa. He can kill someone by sucking their soul out. Kaa can also give life… have explicitly forbidden him from using it on me._

 _* Voldemort has Horcruxes. Fantastic. Just a few small details to be worked out: How many, what they are, and where they are. No problem, should only take a week!_

 _* Why is Voldemort after me? They have begun training me to use magic. Also, I am even aware of Horcruxes, but there is something else that they aren't telling me that sounds very serious. What could be worse than Horcruxes? I have even been learning about Occlumency and now I have that ring to protect my mind somewhat. Need to learn more…_

 _I did see a section on Divination at Flourish and Blotts… My parents seemed to know that Voldemort was after them… or after me… was there a_ _prophecy_ _?_ A History of Magic _does detail their occurrence. What could it have said? If I were going to kill an infant (not that I would), it would probably be to take them out before they became a problem. Okay... Was there a prophecy about me being able to destroy Voldemort? That would seem logical given everything that has happened or has been said/not said. Probably certain at this point. Well, I suppose that could make sense given my possession of Kaa and his ability to kill souls. That seems suspicious in and of itself… probably the strongest piece of evidence besides my family going into hiding is having a snake that can do that AND having the knowledge that the tosser may have made more of these objects that house his soul. Great. Well, I at least have a motivation to study and learn all I can._

 _What was Voldemort like when he was my age? Did anything happen to change him or make him turn out the way that he did? What was his family like?_

 _* Still have to read those letters that my parents left me…_

 _* Remus is a werewolf but a really great guy. My dad and his friends became Animagi to comfort Remus. Need to learn about how to become an animal because how freaking awesome would that be!_

When he had finished going over his thoughts, Harry had then immediately owl-ordered some books on anything that would help him become an Animagus. He couldn't wait to begin that endeavor and pondered what kind of animal he would become; as much as he would have loved to be something similar to his dad's form, he sincerely hoped that he could be an animal with the power of flight.

In addition to his order for texts related to the Animagus transformation, Harry had also requested as many books on defensive magic as he could find. On second thought, he had purchased anything else he could think of that would help him with an unknown future that likely included dealing with more of these Horcruxes. Of note were a few key texts on Voldemort's rise and one or two books on divining the future and prophecies.

Harry then quickly was faced with the sudden realization that he would be soon filling his library to the brim, especially after finding out that the Black Library contained some five thousand or so various texts. Some of which dated back hundreds of years and were housed in a special bookshelf in what had become his study area.

Therefore, Harry thought it would be rather prudent to owl-order another trunk that could contain a few thousand books and he would fill this library with books dedicated solely to Voldemort and anything he could find on Horcruxes. This was going to be his batcave, so to speak, and part of his defense against that Voldemort, which he hoped would be enough to ensure his survival.

However, he was having a problem finding many books that contained information, let alone a passing mention, of Horcruxes at Flourish and Blotts. Walburga and Orion had then pointed him to some helpful texts within the Black Library but had restricted his access to most of the books for the time being. For one, they said that he wouldn't be able to understand their content yet, and the other was that he was far too young to see the kind of magic that was in there. So they had put their collective foot down, well as much as a painting could and Harry indulged their suggestion for the time being.

Speaking of portraits, Harry had asked Remus if there were any that were of his parents in his Potter Vault and asked about how that whole process worked in general. Except that Remus was unsure if James and Lily had done this but could see Lily planning for any eventuality. He then explained to Harry that portraits were not the real person but had some of their memory and personality stored in them at the time when the painting was done. Harry's future DADA Professor explained it in similar terms to a Horcrux, except that there was no soul present. It simply involved duplicating some memories and storing them using magic.

But Harry would look forward to get to know his parents in any way that he could and hoped that those portraits existed.

* * *

A week later, and after finally feeling like he had adjusted somewhat to his new world, Harry felt that he was now able to handle what his parents had thought to write him.

Since he would be off to Hogwarts in a little more than a week he planned to go through them that evening, and told Remus about his plans during dinner. Harry told him that he would want to do this alone but that of course he knew that he would come to him if he needed anything.

Remus had thought that it was a wise decision and appreciated how Harry had grown to think of him so quickly. Although, he could also feel the nerves that were rolling off of Harry as he finished his meal in silence. The only thing that Remus could really do was hug Harry and give him an encouraging pat on the back as the younger boy finished and headed up to his room to find out what was in those letters. In the meantime, Remus would make himself available should the boy need it and moved to sit by the fireplace, lost in his own thoughts about his departed friends.

Harry entered his room and saw that Kaa was stretched out on their bed. Harry soon joined him, lying down on his stomach wile propping himself up with his elbows. The letters were still sealed in front of him, the last vestiges of doubt gnawing at him.

Kaa was being supportive and staying close to Harry's side while giving him the privacy to read through his letters first. He had wanted Harry to have a personal experience with this and didn't want to intrude on his mind and thoughts by taking his usual place on his arm. Though, he would remain close by in case Harry wanted to talk about anything but he wouldn't force the issue and let Harry proceed at a pace he was comfortable with. Harry was appreciative of the sentiment but had become used to sharing most everything with the snake and getting immediate feedback. It was nice having someone that he could trust in completely and not fear that they would judge him without understanding everything.

Finally the time came and Harry swallowed his fear and opened one of the sealed envelopes. He had decided that he would start with his father's letter.

He slowly slid his finger under the seal and removed the folded sheets of parchment, staring at his father's handwriting longingly for a few moments. He was going to try and savor this one-way conversation that he would get to have with his dad for as long as possible.

The letter turned out to be more like a series of journal entries and he noted that the folded sheets of parchment contained many more pages than he had originally thought. It was then that Harry realized that magic was involved and he smiled knowing at how much effort his dad had gone through to leave him so much. It was possible that Harry wouldn't be able to get through everything in one night.

Not able to resist beginning to read any longer, he gripped the cover page and slowly unfurled it to start what looked to be the first entry.

 _Harry,_

 _I can't tell you how sorry I am if you are reading this. I do hope that whatever happened has left you in a good state. Though, I can't really imagine the many things that could have happened to you. Your mother and I tried to plan for everything that we could think of, even if we thought it unlikely to happen. Now, I don't know how much you know or are aware of what happened and why, and so I will start from the beginning._

 _But don't think that is all that I will tell you! For I want to pass down as much as I can about Hogwarts and life and would like to think I can pretend to give you advice as you go along – like I could have if things had been different. Your mother is quite gifted with charms you know and we will both write as much as possible in these and over time you will be able to read more and more. It was the only thing we could think of to be with you as much as possible…_

Harry lifted his head for a moment as he processed that his parents had done more than he could have imagined to draw this process out and tell him things over time, just like if they were still here and interacting with him on a daily basis. His heart felt warm knowing that they had done all of this for him. When he was at Privet Drive, he had never thought that he would ever get this kind of love and support and he had so much of it now. He had Remus and Minnie and Kaa, and now these letters that would be able to keep giving him a connection to his parents. It was an indescribable moment.

Eventually, he got his emotions under control and returned to the letter with a very thankful smile upon his face.

 _First, just know that there are things that we wish to tell you but the information is quite sensitive in nature. We want to make sure that you will be able to handle it and that you can protect it. You see, Harry, there is this type of magic called Occlumency that can protect your mind and also help to organize it. Both your mother and I studied it and it really helped our memory, though your mother became even sharper with her recall of information. Something I hope you have inherited!_

 _Your mother has charmed both of our letters and they will provide you with more information depending on the level of Occlumency that you have learned. Our letters therefore have been smartly charmed to probe your mind and test your progress. Also your mother's doing._

Harry thought this was very reasonable and wondered if the Black Heir ring he wore would allow him to hear things sooner than he would have been able to learn otherwise. This also seemed to indicate that his thinking process in regards to the prophecy was on point if they had taken all of the time to make this possible.

 _Next, I hope that all of this will be easier for you to hear and that you should know some of this because Sirius and Remus should be there to take care of you along with Petunia…_

Harry had to force himself not to scream out in disgust at reading the name of the man that had betrayed his parents. It broke his heart that the man that his parents had had such faith had cost them their lives. Only after several deep breaths was he able to return to the letter.

 _You no doubt will know all about the Fidelius Charm that we cast and how at the last minute Sirius had the brilliant idea of using Pettigrew instead…_

'What the hell?' Harry thought, thinking he had misread something.

Pettigrew wasn't the Secret Keeper? That didn't make any sense since; both Remus and Minerva had told him otherwise. But… his mind was trying to think of an alternative. What if they had changed who the Secret Keeper was and not told anyone? Could Sirius have then killed Pettigrew out of anger and revenge because he had been the one to betray his parents?

He hesitantly kept reading – not sure he was going to like what he had found out.

 _…_ _because no one would have expected it to be anyone other than Sirius. But if you are reading this and didn't know that, then Pettigrew must have been tortured and given up our location. Don't judge him to harshly if he is still alive, though I doubt it if Voldemort would let him live. Your mother and I knew that we were only prolonging the inevitable and that Voldemort would find us. I bet you are wondering or have wondered or have even been told why Voldemort was so interested in us, and you. Though I am afraid your Occlumency is not good enough for this based on reading this sentence because if you were ready another sentence would have appeared._

 _If you do know, then Sirius must have had his reasons for telling you and raising you to be prepared._

'Here it is again,' Harry thought.

His heart began to race at the thought: was Pettigrew really the Secret Keeper? Harry would have to ask Remus later.

Though something didn't sound right about all of this and he had a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. And that wasn't the only thing causing this very bad feeling. He was almost one-hundred percent positive that there was a prophecy now and that it centered on him and Voldemort.

Harry sighed; it explained so much.

In reality, he thought that he was far too young for any of this and didn't know how he felt about being destined to fight someone. Although, his mind had been getting more and more used to this idea that there had to have been a prophecy. The only thing that made it better was that at least he would know about it going forward.

Hopefully, he would have the time to process whatever was said in it and that knowing ahead of time would make it easier to deal with. Besides, he reasoned, if he had the power to defeat Voldemort, he was hardly in the position to do so now. And with what he knew about Horcruxes – Voldemort would need time to recover.

It seemed that he was right to purchase an additional library and was committed to pilfering some of the books from the Black Library now. He would need to be prepared and he would have to start now.

Which was exactly what Harry started to do as he put himself in Voldemort's position if he had reawakened from a Horcrux.

If he had thought that a specific piece of magic that he had performed had made him immortal turned out to work in a slightly different manner, then he would take time to understand what had happened. So that had to add a few months if not years until Voldemort made himself known again.

Moving on, Harry reasoned that Voldemort would then have come back as a younger version of himself, which introduced a lot of unknowns. Would that iteration know about the prophecy, and how much less would he know about magic in general?

This thought process led Harry to wonder when the prophecy had been made and just who had heard it.

Therefore, it could very well be years before this would come to a head and Harry thought he would have enough time to prepare himself.

Which honestly made him feel a little better inside at the thought that none of this was likely to happen overnight. He had already committed to try his best and apply himself at Hogwarts and he loved to read and learn new things. He just had another reason now, though this reason was rather important in that his life literally could hang in the balance.

Though Harry wasn't immediately worried about his destiny, he was more concerned about Pettigrew potentially being the one to have betrayed his parents. He would have to get to the bottom of this, but he couldn't exactly call Sirius innocent. Even if he thought Sirius was justified in killing Pettigrew, he had also killed 13 Muggles and would probably still be in Azkaban for that.

Saddened about losing another of his father's friends, he turned his attention back to the letter and read as his father described some of his childhood and he learned about his paternal grandparents. But he was fast approaching the end of what was currently written and the section just so happened to focuse on Hogwarts.

 _Now, Harry, don't be nervous about Hogwarts. Learning magic is not that difficult if you go about it the right way. Many texts try and get children to focus on specific incantations for performing the spells to help them concentrate because they are too young to really understand that magic is all about intent and belief. For example, Transfiguration will require a different spell to be said for every change you wish to perform in the beginning but over time – Transfiguration is the easiest branch of magic to use silently because it is all about making what you see in your mind come to life. In your first lesson, you will learn how to turn a match into a needle and nearly everyone struggles with that because they focus so much on the words and the wand movement. While important, you have to want the match to change and visualize it changing in your mind for it to work. Use that same principle in all of your classes and you will go very far._

 _I wish I could be there for you and watch you grow. Just know that I am with you,_ _always_ _._ _You have my blood flowing through you and think about that whenever times get to be too much. A part of me will always live on through you. I only want you to be happy, Harry. I don't care if you get sorted into Slytherin or whatever else you could be worried about that I would potentially disprove of. We did everything for you and it was because we love you and you are the most important person to your mother and I. I love you, Harry James Potter, and will always be proud of you._

 _Until next time, my son._

Harry was quite proud of the fact that he had managed to hold back the tears that had threatened to spill. In the past few weeks, he had felt like he alternated between being surprised, angry, or sad; and this letter proved to be no different. But now that he had this letter, he would be able to hear from his dad from time to time and that was certainly something that he would treasure for as long as he lived.

He would do his best to make them proud and he liked thinking that their blood flowed through him. In fact, he imagined just that for the next couple of moments as he prepared himself to begin reading the letter from his mum.

 _My Darling Boy,_

 _Your father and I wrote these letters together so I will try not to repeat what he said. There are things I would love to tell you but want you to be prepared for them. I don't want to overburden you with this information at eleven if you are just getting to know this world. I can't imagine Petunia telling you much about being a wizard. I know it might not have been the best childhood and for that I apologize. It was my decision to put you there because of the protection that you would get. I wanted you to be safe Harry. I will tell you the protection that I performed was ancient magic from a very old tome and we have arranged for it to be in the Potter Vault. I feel that fourteen is still too young for that information but can't withhold it from you as I have a feeling it will be important. Just promise me that you will use it well?_

 _I am sure your father explained Occlumency and I must urge you to study this. There are things you must know but the information is quite important and dangerous should it fall into the wrong hands. I want you to be prepared for what is to come and I have a feeling that what we did was not good enough. I have a feeling that Voldemort will return even though the magic I invoked would kill him or should have killed him. I don't know how he will return or could, but I want you to be prepared nonetheless. Better safe than sorry!_

 _My biggest regret is not watching you grow up and seeing you live your life. You gave me such joy when you were little and went exploring all over the house. Just know that there is nothing that you could ever do to stop me from loving you. Listen to your heart, Harry, if you are ever in doubt. Especially if you have inherited my way of thinking! Sometimes you can think to the point where it just makes things worse and you have to trust in what your gut tells you._

 _And don't give Severus a hard time. I know your father doesn't like him and James could be quite mean sometimes though he did grow out of it. Deep down, Severus is a good man. We had a falling out and never made up because of things that were happening in the world. If you can, let him know that I forgive him. We all do things that we regret. James regrets being mean to him and I regret not knowing how much Severus was hurting. Don't let one stupid moment or fight change your relationship with people you love; it isn't worth it in the end._

 _I hope that you enjoy Hogwarts. Just try and behave more than your father did? And study hard, Harry! The secret to magic is intent – but also belief, especially for charms. You have to believe in them to make the spell reach its full potential._

 _Until next time sweetheart._

Harry didn't feel like reading anymore and was glad that he couldn't. He took a few moments to silently process everything that he had just read. He had just been given a great gift and though it wasn't his parents in the flesh, it was still something.

He would make both of them proud and would carry a little bit of them with him wherever he went and whatever he did. The more he thought about some of the tips that they had given him about magic, the more he thought that they had made perfect sense. He couldn't wait to get to Hogwarts and see just what he could do with that knowledge and his determination to become a great wizard.

However, all of the information though about Pettigrew and the prophecy had reached a breaking point: he had decided that he wanted to share it with Remus. Right now.

He didn't want to keep discovering things out a little here and a little there. He just wanted to know and he had come to the conclusion that being blunt with Remus was the way to go.

He discussed this with Kaa and he agreed with everything that Harry was thinking.

' _It is strange, youngling, how everything does seem to happen around you. I think if you are direct with Remus he will be honest with you_.' Kaa thought to Harry as Harry practically stomped downstairs on his mission to get answers to all of his questions.

He approached Remus who was reading by the fireplace on the second floor. Remus noticed the boy coming closer and was startled by the fierce look in his eyes. Whatever was in that letter must have been a shock to Harry; and he figured that himself he was about to find out just what had been so alarming.

"Is everything all right, Harry?" Remus asked, truly concerned as Harry sat down across from him.

The boy's arms were folded across his chest, minding where Kaa was as the snake wrapped tighter around left wrist.

"I just read part of the letters Remus and I would like some honest answers. I am really getting sick of thinking that I have heard everything only just to discover this next huge thing. I think I have demonstrated that I have handled things well so far. I mean Horcruxes, finding out that I remember watching my mother die, and battling Voldemort's soul. Wouldn't you agree?"

Kaa and him had discussed the best way to go about getting their questions answered. He knew that adults were much more likely to treat you like an adult if you behaved like one and it would do no good to just demand answers like a petulant child. He wanted to emphasize that _he had_ dealt with things well so far and wanted to get Remus to agree to that. His goal was to project a more mature person for Remus to deal with.

"Yes, Harry – I think you have done splendid, really!"

Remus could only imagine what Harry was feeling on the inside and really thought it would do more harm than good in keeping things from him. He didn't think Harry had the Occlumency skills just yet, even considering the added boon that his Heir ring provided, but he knew about the Horcruxes already. What was a prophecy compared to that? Remus thought that he deserved to know about the prophecy but he didn't know what it had said, only that one existed.

He was wondering though just how to bring up the subject, and to be honest was a little surprised that Harry hadn't figured it out for himself. Especially when given the other things the boy had amazingly been able to put together, like his demonstrated deductive skill with figuring out that Remus was a werewolf.

Harry remained silent, waiting for Remus to make a decision.

Ultimately, Remus couldn't deny Harry the truth.

'And he won't go through this alone,' Remus thought.

"You have my word that I will answer your questions to the best of my ability." He got up and moved to sit down next to the boy and held his right hand to show his support.

"Thank you, Remus."

Harry took a deep breath before going on.

"The letter said that Pettigrew was the secret keeper, not Sirius. Could that have been true?"

Remus' entire face immediately went white.

'Yep,' Harry thought – more than likely it had been true.

Which meant it would have been Pettigrew that had betrayed his parents and not Sirius. And that Sirius had gone after Pettigrew in retribution.

Remus was thinking very quickly about all of these things and had come to a similar conclusion: Sirius was innocent of the betrayal but guilty for the murder of Pettigrew and those 13 Muggles and would still remain in Azkaban.

It also made more sense for Pettigrew to betray Lily and James, though still hurtful, it had been so hard thinking that Sirius had done that to someone who was practically his brother.

"Would Sirius remain in Azkaban for killing Pettigrew and those Muggles?" Harry then asked, just wanting confirmation of his suspicion.

"Yes, Harry," Remus had whispered back.

They both were dealing with the weight of this knowledge and both had sat back into the couch, trying to find comfort in the plush cushions.

"Though I will inform Dumbledore, it would be wrong to let Sirius be classified as a traitor though he did kill people. It would also help to be honest about Pettigrew, though I'm not sure what good words in a letter will do. What happened that day has pretty much been established as fact and would need more evidence to overturn any decision. Though, the words are more than enough for me…"

Remus gave a silent apology to Sirius for thinking the worst of him – and mentally scolding him for killing in revenge, but he imagined Sirius had not been thinking straight if his suggestion led to the deaths of his friends. Remus didn't know what to think about Pettigrew… Pettigrew, it seemed unlikely now that Voldemort had tortured Pettigrew for the Potter's location. He really must have betrayed them if Sirius had gone after him and found him. He would have to bring this up with Dumbledore and the others as well.

"So," Harry began after a while, wanting to know the answer but thinking of no better way to ask than to just come right out and say it.

"Was there a prophecy about me and Voldemort saying that I could defeat him?"

Remus sighed deeply at that. He didn't have to answer yes at that point, but he did anyways.

"Yes, Harry…" there was a significant pause before Remus continued. He was unsure of what to say.

"But I don't know what it says. Only the gist of it was that you had the power to defeat him."

Remus turned to look at Harry wanting to know how he was taking everything.

"I'm fine Remus, honestly. I think a part of me has always known, especially lately. I always wondered about that dream and ever since I learned what it meant, I can't say I am surprised. It explains everything that has happened to me – when you think about it."

There was another pause as they both thought about things; the only change was that Remus had slightly tightened his grip on Harry's hand, something for which Harry was appreciative of. Harry would be more concerned if he had to go through this alone.

Mainly Harry was just exhausted at this point. He had been through so much and didn't recognize himself from the boy who had begun this summer. He couldn't wait to get to Hogwarts and have something else to occupy his mind with.

Remus and Harry had ended up falling asleep on the couch, as they had talked well into the night. Harry told him about the letters and how they had been charmed by Lily to reveal information if his Occlumency shields were strong enough and that more information would appear over time. Harry thought it was neat that it would seem like his parents were going to be there with him as he grew over time and be able to provide more information to him.

After that night, the last week at Grimmauld Place seemed to fly by and Harry had spent all of his free time after finishing his course books practicing his meditation for Occlumency. Part of the reason was to learn more about what was contained in the letters or to be told more by Minnie. But most of it was because it was required for his Animagus transformation. He was keeping that secret from the others because Minerva had told him it was dangerous but the thought about transforming into an animal was too wicked to pass up, let alone how it could further protect him. He told himself that he would take it slow, and it was going to help him with Occlumency. It was a win-win he thought.

Before he knew it, September first arrived and Remus escorted Harry to the train station and they boarded the Hogwarts Express.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think: good or bad!**

 **Next Chapter is sorting and we get to meet Cedric for the first time :)**


	11. The Sorting Hat

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, this chapter was a lot easier to write than the last one. I know that some of you may not be happy with the sorting but I have my reasons and feel they were clearly spelled out. Also, next chapter we meet Cedric!

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

The trip to King's Cross was uneventful. The only real hardship had been in leaving Grimmauld Place, which had been the first place where Harry had felt like he had truly gotten to be himself. Besides, he now had family there that he was in the process of getting to know.

While Walburga could be a bit of a snob and tended to look down at most people who were below her station as a matriarch of the illustrious Black family, she did have a tremendous capacity for generally caring about those that she did find worthy. During the many talks that Harry had gotten to have with her, he began to learn more of the subtleties and nuances that existed in the wizarding world. For instance, when Walburga and her husband had first joined Voldemort, they had done so out of a desire to bring back wizarding culture and tradition. She was a staunch conservative when it came to family heritage and had joined willingly with the new movement and encouraged her family to join as well.

'A return to values,' she had called it.

However, their participation within the organization lessened in later years as the killings started and the war ramped up. They realized far too late that Voldemort was mad and no longer espoused the same desires under which he had recruited a significant number of followers to his cause. Some of their own family members had even been sacrificed or killed on pointless raids.

In addition, the Blacks had been a major bankroller of the movement, and had been bleeding gold into his coffers. Walburga had told Harry that the last straw had been when Regulus went missing.

But by then, it was too late. And then Sirius was lost on top of that. Everything and everyone that they had either known or cared about was gone, and so they simply retreated to the safety of Grimmauld Place in the hope that they could ride out the storm.

It had been difficult for Harry to hear the pain in her voice, and know that her family was not the only one that had been cut down by that monster. However, Walburga and him developed a close bond quite quickly and she was doing everything in her power to prepare him for the future.

Aside from laying the foundations of Occlumency, Walburga imparted a great deal of wizarding history and taught him the family connections. The Black family tree was memorized quite quickly as a result.

Meanwhile, Orion had done wonders for Harry's self-confidence. Harry may not have loved everything that was expected of him now, but he couldn't deny the positive effect that Orion's teachings had had on his outlook on life. Now, he felt like he had a thicker skin and was just more comfortable being in his own body. Orion's advice about always being true to one's self and having confidence had really made an impact. He would miss being able to talk to them both.

And then there was Kreacher, who Harry had told to enjoy himself when he was at Hogwarts and to do what he thought was fun. He would miss the little guy; even though he would have to find a way to reduce his incessant need to watch over him night and day.

So it was all very bittersweet for Harry as he sat down on the train with Remus and thought about what he was leaving. While Remus secured their compartment and cast a stronger version of the Notice-Me-Not Charm, Harry tried to turn his downcast mood around. Instead of feeling morose at what he was leaving, Harry thought instead about how he was shortly going to be doing something that both of his parents had done. Just thinking about how he was finally going to get a chance to explore the castle where his parents met improved his mood drastically.

Though, with his thoughts now on where he was headed, it was challenging to not at least entertain his concerns about meeting everyone for the first time as the Boy Who Lived.

At least he felt more prepared about what he was getting himself into with the tutelage that he had received. Still, he preferred not to think about things too much. After all, there had been lengthy discussion within Grimmauld Place about how he was perceived in the world and what that would mean for his time at Hogwarts. Of course, no discussion would have been complete without some discussion as to which house he would get sorted into.

In fact, Remus had even let it slip that Harry would be able to have a conversation with this Sorting Hat, and he was very much looking forward to running a few things by it. He already had some ideas as to where he _should_ go, but if living with Orion and Walburga had taught him anything, it was that it was always prudent to make a decision after having all of the facts. Therefore, he would have to wait and see if the hat had anything to add.

At the very least, it would offer another perspective on things and he wondered what the hat's take on Kaa would be and if it would able to feel the snake because of their bond.

When the train began to move, Harry shook off his thoughts and spent the first part of the trip rereading some of his favorite sections from _Hogwarts: A History_.

Occasionally, he would stare out the window with a contemplative look on his face as he imaged a specific passage that wasn't accompanied by a moving picture.

The second part of the trip was spent going through some of the meditation exercises that he had been working on with Walburga; as the closer they were getting to their destination, they more he his mind began to suffer from the effects of some of his anxiety.

Which is why Harry was quite pleased that he had finally been able to calm his mind since Walburga's next assignment had been to start focusing on some of his specific memories and see if he couldn't begin to organize them better.

For example, she told him to concentrate on any memory before he found out he was a wizard and place it within a section labeled, 'The Dursleys,' before doing the same to other sections. She had told him that it was a time-consuming process in the beginning, but eventually he would be able to see the benefits of faster recall. Once he had that part down, Walburga had then briefly given an overview for how he would be able to construct his mental defenses to keep other people out.

At the same time that Harry was busy inside his mind, Kaa unwrapped himself from Harry's wrist and curled up on the empty seat beside him. It was too distracting for the snake to sit there and have all of these memories flutter through his own mind as he was trying to sleep.

Harry spent close to an hour organizing his mind before he got distracted by some of the memories that he was sorting and returned to the present to contemplate them more.

Like the fact that he was fairly certain that he was gay. The opposite sex had never interested him in _that_ way; he had never even had a desire to kiss a girl! And then there were the dreams. He didn't think that he was going through puberty yet, as it was a little early for boys, but he definitely noticed boys the way that his peers had talked about girls. He had done a little researching about homosexuality in the wizarding world and he knew that it was more acceptable than it was in the muggle world.

And Snape was gay… and his mother had been really good friends with him from the stories that he had heard from Remus until Snape had done something that Remus hadn't elaborated on. Harry had had enough tact not to ask Snape directly – though he wanted to tell him that his mum had forgiven him long ago him. He was at least comforted that his parents wouldn't have a problem with him being gay. And they did tell him that they just wanted him to be happy, so he was going to hold them to what they had said.

" _The train is slowing youngling, I think we may be arriving_ ," Kaa commented from his prone position.

Harry looked out the window, and could see them approaching the small wizarding village of Hogsmeade that Remus had told him about.

As such, both Harry and Remus began to gather their belongings as the Hogwarts Express came to a halt. Though, not everything needed to be carried with them as most of the trunks would magically find their way to whatever house Harry was sorted into.

"We will be arriving at Hogsmeade in 5 minutes. Please leave all of your belongings on the train as they will be taken up to Hogwarts separately," the conductor voice rang through the train for those who weren't aware.

Harry gathered Kaa and had placed his invisibility cloak, map, and wand in an expandable pouch that Remus had given Harry as a belated birthday present as he didn't want to part with these items.

While still inside their compartment, Remus knelt down in front of Harry and gave him a few final thoughts before they separated.

"Now, don't be worried, Harry," Remus spoke as he smoothed the wrinkles out of Harry's robes.

'James and Lily would be so proud of him,' Remus thought with a tinge of guilt as he stood in front of Harry. It seemed so unfair that he would get to know Harry and watch him grow up while they didn't.

A sad smile showed on his face as he took Harry in.

"Or nervous. It does not matter what house you get sorted into or what house you choose, should the hat ask."

Remus looked at him knowingly.

"I think you may get asked to weigh in. Honestly, you have qualities that could put you in any house. I think your parents…"

He tipped Harry's chin up so that he could look into his eyes.

"Your parents would just want you to be happy. They wouldn't care what house you went into. And neither do I. You have to forge your own path and do what is best for you. Don't worry about what anyone else thinks."

"Thanks, Remus… I know that we had talked about it, but I think I needed to hear that again."

A small but genuine smile accompanied his response, and wrapped his arms around Remus' shoulders as his guardian pulled him into a parting hug.

'I could definitely get used to this,' Harry thought as he savored the protectiveness of Remus' embrace.

Remus then directed Harry in the direction that the first years would take as they traveled to the castle separately by boat. The thought process with the boats was to give the first years an appreciation of the castle and allow them to experience Hogwarts in all of its grandeur for the first time. It also provided time for the rest of the students and staff to become seated before the Sorting Ceremony.

* * *

Professor McGonagall met the first years as they arrived in the castle and briefly explained the different houses to them. Of course, the corner of her mouth curved up ever so slightly when her eyes landed on him, and he gave her a small nod in return. She had already told Harry everything that was about to happen and, while she hoped to have him in her house, she would understand if there was some other place that he was meant to be. Harry had promised to come bother Minnie no matter where he was sorted.

Next, they were led into the Great Hall; an experience that Harry would always remember. He could literally feel the magic in the air and it called to him. He had never felt more comfortable in his entire life; he was where he belonged. Items were around him that he had seen a hundred times in _Hogwarts: A History_ , but never with this intensity and never with this feeling. Thousands of candles just floated above everyone, coating everything in a warm, golden hue. Beyond the candles was where the ceiling was supposed to be but it gave way to the night sky and all of the stars shined down upon them.

On the wall, huge torches were lit and there was even a bat or two that flew among them, only to return to the where the ceiling should have been and seemingly disappear into the night.

The group of first years was led to the front and came to a rest in front of the staff table, which was perpendicular to the four long house tables that extended nearly the length of the entire hall.

The Slytherin table was behind them and to their far left and was followed by Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor as you moved to the right.

Taking in the sights helped calm him as he was beginning to become more apprehensive about having to sit on a stool in front of the entire school. He could only imagine how this would feel for someone with genuine stage freight. Because really, that person should just have gotten immediately sorted into Gryffindor for his or her bravery.

Professor McGonagall then turned to face them and the rest of the students that were behind the first years became silent to hear what she was about to say.

"Welcome back to Hogwarts for another year of learning," she directed towards the upper years in a tone Harry knew to contain many emotions.

Some of the students she was happy to have back, and some students she preferred back only if they behaved themselves. As if she was emphasizing what Harry was thinking, she peered to the Gryffindor table where her gaze fell onto a pair of twins with blazing red hair.

"And welcome to Hogwarts for our newest members. Great things lie ahead of you, I'm sure."

She paused for a dramatic effect.

"Now shortly, we will begin the sorting process and you will be able to join your new houses."

She motioned to the different tables behind them and explained which table belonged to which house. She then introduced the Sorting Hat, which belted out a colorful tune.

 _Welcome, welcome, everyone,_

 _Your time at Hogwarts just begun,_

 _So take a gamble, Let me ramble!_

 _Oh, what a great preamble!_

 _Mind these words that I may say,_

 _For they may save your life someday._

 _There is still evil that lurks this land,_

 _It may even shake your hand._

 _Secrets are around us all,_

 _Some are present in this very hall._

 _The smart ones will know where to look,_

 _In every cranny, every nook._

 _But do not worry yourself right now,_

 _Just let me sit upon your brow._

 _For inside your mind I will go,_

 _There is something I need to know._

 _Though, this part should not take long,_

 _To find out where you belong._

 _And I may ask a thing or two,_

 _Take heed, you should answer true._

 _We have four houses in this hall,_

 _Each is mighty and stands tall._

 _They pride themselves on different things,_

 _If you listen closely, you may here one sing._

 _No house is better than the rest,_

 _Don't think I kid, I do not jest._

 _My thinking has evolved of late,_

 _Though I don't think I could pick a date._

 _Years I've sat on countless heads,_

 _For some minds need to be led._

 _And there are those of you quite proud,_

 _They think they know and are very loud._

 _My hope is that there is just one_ ,

 _Whose mind is open and seeks the sun._

 _Heed the advice I give you freely,_

 _And in the end, I mean it, really._

 _Now my remaining words are few,_

 _I would listen if I were you._

 _This castle was built to study magic,_

 _But we've had events, some quite tragic._

 _And just remember when it grows dark,_

 _Each of us can create a spark._

 _Our futures are our own to bear,_

 _But that does not mean you cannot share._

 _Let your heart be your guide,_

 _Should someone be at your side._

 _For you will know if they are true,_

 _Ones like that are very few._

 _Take caution, but don't despair,_

 _Just watch out for every other stair._

 _And happiness can be found at any time,_

 _Just look at me I love to rhyme._

It was hard for Harry to not clap as enthusiastically as he had wanted to do. However, it would have stood out amongst the low-key and polite clapping that filled the hall.

Which Harry just didn't understand; a hat just sang to them for crying out loud! That wasn't something that one saw everyday. In that moment, he sincerely hoped that he never lost the thrill of seeing or doing magic and you became complacent with everything around him.

Though, he couldn't help but now wonder if the hat was sentient in some way since he several lines had stood out to him. For one thing, the hat had basically said that Voldemort was still out there. Harry noticed the teachers pick up on it at any rate, but hardly anyone was paying them any attention as McGonagall had then moved things along.

"When I call your name, come forward and sit on the stool and I will place the Sorting Hat on your head. When it calls your house, please walk towards the appropriate table and join your new housemates."

She started calling them forward alphabetically. Harry would have a ways to go before he was called and spent his time closely watching the others who went before him, trying to remember who went to which house.

Again, as his turn approached, he was more nervous on how others would view him and not so much on which house he went to. Though, he tried to focus instead on the hat instead since it would have sat on not only his parent's head, but Voldemort's as well. He very much doubted that he would have this opportunity to ask it questions again.

Eventually, it was his turn.

"Harry Potter," Minerva called out.

He had been prepared for the stares and the whispering that had broken out as he moved his way up to the platform and sat on the stool. But when the hat was placed on his head and another presence entered his mind, it found it quite easy to ignore the excited and curious faces of the student body.

" _Well, well, well_ ," said an ancient voice.

" _It has been quite some time since I have seen such a mind as yours. And oh, what's this? You have bonded to a snake! I have never been connected to two minds before. Nice to know that I can still be surprised."_

The Hat was delighted.

Harry was momentarily stunned into silence by this unusual sensation in his head. It was like an echo that seemed to come from the very depths of his mind, an itch that he wouldn't even know where to begin to scratch.

" _Hello…. Mr. Hat_?" he ventured cautiously.

Kaa was silent and observing everything; he would add his thoughts later.

" _Mr. Potter_ ," his acknowledgment was returned.

" _I know that placing you will be difficult now that I know your mind. I will likely need your input in this matter. The fate of the world could depend on which house you go into, between you and me_."

Harry went wide-eyed.

" _You know the prophecy_?" Harry asked incredulously?

" _Dumbledore is fond of thinking out loud, but I can't be more specific because I am bound never to reveal anyone else's secrets," t_ he hat replied very matter-of-factly.

Harry thought for a second, " _but_ _you still want to tell me something_?"

" _I wish to tell you many things, Mr. Potter. Vital things. But, alas, I can only give you a warning."_

The hat's voice sounded sad.

" _I will take whatever you can give me._ "

It was a very honest and sincere statement. What or who could the hat be trying to warn him about? Dumbledore? The prophecy?

" _Be wary of who you trust explicitly. Some have only your best interests at heart and would do anything to help you, while others still have great intentions but may not always act in your best interests_."

The hat was giving him as much as he could while working within the parameters that bounds him.

" _Thank you, Mr. Hat_."

'So it was more or less Dumbledore,' he decided internally.

From what he knew from his books and from what he had seen, Dumbledore was incredibly powerful and had stood up to Grindlewald and again had stood as a rallying point against Voldemort. He could see how leaders like that sometimes had hard decisions to make and sometimes the pressure affected them adversely. They felt like they and they alone were entrusted to make the important decisions, unwilling to let others in.

It was curious and he was now trying to think as fast as he could, knowing that they still had to sort him. He had to take advantage of talking to this hat.

" _Don't think I'm not grateful, but why tell me anything at all? Is this just because of the prophecy?_ "

" _I have lived hundreds of years and have sat on the heads of most of wizarding Britain and very few things attract my attention since I am not permitted to interact with anyone again. I suppose you could say I am talking to you because I knew of you before you came because of the prophecy. However, think about everyone that I could have sorted. If you knew what someone was truly capable of, but couldn't warn anyone, and then you suddenly had a chance to make some small, perhaps not insignificant difference, wouldn't you take it?_ "

The hat allowed Harry a few seconds to consider his statement.

" _You sorted Voldemort_ _and you finally found a way to intervene,_ " Harry stated more than asked.

It made sense now. The hat couldn't warn anyone about what he had saw in that mind, and had sorted countless students since that could have met their deaths at his hand. But he knew that Harry was coming and was involved with Voldemort and so could intervene because Harry had already known much of it. Besides, vague warnings hardly counted as revealing someone's secrets if you were trying to work within confined limits.

" _You would do well in Ravenclaw, Mr. Potter. One more thing before we get to the sorting. My magic and awareness comes from the four founders who left an imprint in me – much like a wizard painting. I am a combination of them and their thoughts and their desires. And I am tied to this castle, which they built. There are many secrets here and there and places just waiting to be discovered or rediscovered. It is already a boon that you have this map, though I'll wager some parts of the castle are not on it. For not everyone can access certain parts if they cannot ssssssspeak the langage. Keep your eyes open and try to feel your way around. You never know who or what you could discover."_

It was his Salazar heritage that had also wanted to act. After sitting on the head of so many Muggle-borns, he had simply changed his mind. He also knew what Tom had done with the chamber; he had found it and unleashed the horror within. Now Salazar wished that he had never created the chamber or placed the Basilisk in it in the first place.

It was time to put a stop to it and Harry was his best chance. The boy was already bound to a powerful serpent and used him nobly – he hoped Harry that would be able to rein in the Basilisk as well.

" _Ok… so, in my spare time I should try and find secret rooms that I could access using parseltongue_?"

Was the Hat really telling him to snoop around?

'Hmmmm,' he thought. His memory was pulling him towards something familiar that he had read in _Hogwarts: A History_.

It clicked. " _You want me to find the Chamber of Secrets! It Exists_?"

" _Precisely… Let's move on. We don't have that much time left before people will start to get suspicious. I imagine, you could earn a little more time simply because you are the Boy Who Lived and could go into any house… I see you have given this much thought and I would agree with many of the things you have already decided. So, I will leave this up to you… Where do you want to be? Think wisely_."

So Harry was getting the choice in the end. He had anticipated getting a chance to speak, Remus had practically told him so. But to choose where he wanted to go by himself: that was slightly unexpected, though not unwelcomed.

" _Well, I do agree with you in that I could go to any of the four houses. Gryffindor would be wonderful because that is where I am expected to go, I think. It would be nice to be where my parents and Remus were. Minnie would also be a fantastic Head of House… I-I try to have courage and be brave with everything in front of me. And I want to do the right thing, but should I do something just because it is expected of me_?"

Harry asked the Hat.

" _Are we ruling out Gryffindor then, Mr. Potter_?"

" _Yes, I don't think it would help me being where I would be expected to go, unable to explore the other parts of my personality. And I'm not sure that house even represents the greatest part of me_."

Harry was doing the hard thing – he so wanted to be closer to his parents.

" _Very well, and the others_?" The Sorting Hat moved the conversation along.

" _Ravenclaw would be out for similar reasons. Sure, I love learning and knowledge but that's not the greatest part of me either… I don't know if I even have one part of me that is bigger or more pronounced than another. I like applying what I learn and using it, not just knowing it. I'm afraid that being in Ravenclaw would hinder my path ahead… I have things I must do and it would be harder to focus on my task in that environment. Though, I suppose it could help in gaining access to knowledge to fight Voldemort – it just may not balance out the other distractions_."

If he didn't have this prophecy to contend with, he did think Ravenclaw would have been perfect for him. It certainly suited his nature.

" _I agree with that, Mr. Potter. All of it_."

The Sorting Hat was glad that Harry was very intelligent but was given hope with discovering just how much maturity he had as well. It wouldn't help the young man if he couldn't handle the pressures of his journey ahead.

Harry kept going.

" _That would leave Hufflepuff and Slytherin. I think it could be beneficial being in Slytherin. If that's where Voldemort went, I would be able to understand his mind better. See what he saw and see what shaped him. However, I know that it would hinder my ability going forward. I would have to deal with the politics of that house and I don't think I have the time for that. I would never be left alone to deal with what needs to be done. However, I will need every ounce of cunning I possess to help defeat Voldemort and Slytherin could help me hone that_."

He changed gears.

" _And Hufflepuff, I feel initially it would be a shock to everyone. No one would think of me to go there. I would have no expectations in that house. I could use that to my favor, though I will have to suffer that house's reputation as the place for those who didn't sort into another. Which is sad, when loyalty and hard work can get you far in life, and I think I will need both. I think in the end that is where I will be happiest. I don't think I could go through this alone; I will need help and friends and may find some true ones in there. Neville was sorted into that house. I think that is my decision. Hufflepuff. I could fly under the radar and concentrate on the task ahead_."

But Harry wasn't finished.

" _And more than those reasons, I now see what Uncle Orion and Aunt Walburga have taught me. I need to know my own strength and weakness. Hufflepuff in this moment and in the foreseeable future fits me. I need to make my own way in this life despite the tasks ahead. And while Hufflepuff certainly gives me the clearest shot at being able to accomplish this, I know that at my core, these traits define me better than the others. Perhaps I could even find someone to be at my side if I survive all of this_." Harry was finished with his point of view.

" _Well put, Mr. Potter_. _I think that is a wise decision. You have a hard journey ahead. But, I think you will find a home in Hufflepuff_. _Though, I will caution you about rejecting help from others solely because you don't want to see them hurt. If they are aware of the dangers ahead, you should respect their choice to join you_. _Or else why are you going into Hufflepuff to begin with_?"

The Sorting Hat wanted to leave Harry with some lasting pieces of advice. He had seen deeply into Harry's mind and knew Harry that would not like that someone was in harm's way because of him, but he had to make Harry aware that that choice was not his to make. He had sat on enough minds to know these things about people.

At the staff table, Remus was getting nervous. Harry had been under the hat for almost 15 minutes. And while it wasn't a record, he couldn't help but wonder what they were talking about. He honestly didn't know which way this would go.

He was trying very hard not to fidget in his chair and was just about to nudge Minerva on his right when the hat called out.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

'Well that was something,' Remus thought. 'A Potter, in Hufflepuff!'

That had to have been a first. There was an audible grown from the Gryffindor table and some snickers coming from the Slytherin side. Harry had expected this, however. He knew what he was getting into and how his decision would be responded to. That was one of the reasons why he had made it!

He got off of the stool and held his head high and proudly approached the Hufflepuff table. It took his new house a few moments before they started cheering wildly and a few 'we got Potter' chants were heard.

Harry sat down and looked up to Remus who gave him a slight nod to his head while Minerva sighed slightly but also nodded. He knew she had wanted him in her house.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think: good or bad!**

 **Next, we get to meet Cedric for the first time :)**


	12. The Marauder's Map

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, I decided to change the pace of this chapter and draw some of the events out. In going through this again, while I thought it was believable, Harry was just going through things too quickly. This chapter is mainly what I would have done if I were in Harry's position and I had the map in a huge castle.

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

The rest of the Sorting Ceremony was a blur in Harry's mind. While the few remaining students had their own conversations with the Sorting Hat, Harry was quickly introduced to some of his fellow first years sitting around him.

Harry was happy to see that the boy directly to his left was none other than Neville Longbottom. Kaa had gotten the distinct impression, and Harry agreed with his snake's assessment that Neville was worried for some reason.

The only thing that made sense to Harry was if the other boy was feeling ashamed for getting sorted into Hufflepuff? Harry knew that the boy's parents had been tortured to insanity and were now permanent residents of a St. Mungos ward. Did Neville think he needed to go into Gryffindor to show or confirm that he was brave like his parents?

That was silly. What his parents had gone through was something so much more important than getting sorted into a house; that type of courage was one defined by choices, and Harry hoped that Neville never had to face a similar situation.

It made Harry sad because he thought that Neville would go onto honor his parents, just perhaps not in the way that he thought he would.

However, before they could continue talking, Dumbledore rose from his seat and quieted the hall with a welcome speech that finished with the man hoping that their minds had gotten good and empty over the summer so that they could be filled throughout the year.

When the man finished, the empty bowls before them were suddenly filled with a mouth-watering selection of food and the entire hall hungrily dug in.

However, even as the other Hufflepuff students were stuffing their face, Harry was inundated by others who were trying to find out all they could about the Boy Who Lived. Students all the way up to seventh years had started to pepper him with very personal and directed questions, and Harry was thankful when a Prefect intervened and directed the conversation to something more appropriate.

Harry was not used to being the center of attention and hoped that everyone's interest in him would be over with quickly. Kaa, meanwhile, had needed to slither into a pocket on the inside of Harry's robe that Harry had made for him.

It had a slight expansion charm on it and was slightly reinforced so that Kaa wouldn't be accidentally squished if something bumped into him. They had also been able to rig something that allowed their skin to remain in contact so that they could still communicate telepathically.

' _How are you doing, youngling_?' Kaa asked, his voice full of concern.

' _As well as can be expected, I didn't expect to have that conversation today with the Sorting Hat and I will have a lot to think about later… I am happy with my decision though. I wasn't expecting to be able to decide completely on my own_.'

If he were being honest with himself, he was also feeling a little sad at not getting to go where he would have liked, but then again, he had thought about it so much that he would probably be feeling this way regardless of which house he had gone into. So ultimately, he concluded that there was no use in thinking about it anymore.

Thankfully, the rest of dinner passed by quickly as everyone was in a haze of excitement and Dumbledore had only a few more words for them once they were all watered and fed. The Prefects were then tasked with leading their respective houses back to their dorms.

Harry was excited to see where he would be staying at Hogwarts, and even more excited to finally have some downtime within the castle. After all, he did have a map to use and hoped that he would be able to find some privacy so that he could use it.

The other concern that he had was in keeping Kaa a secret and he wondered where his snake would stay. At the moment he was thinking about one of his trunks, but hoped that something better would present itself in time.

Although, the new trunk that he had purchased before coming to Hogwarts wouldn't be so bad, as it contained a even bigger library and also came with a small apartment.

There was a comfortable bedroom and sitting area and a small kitchenette where Harry had stored several months worth of mice for Kaa. It wasn't ideal, but at least Kaa would be able to roam about in privacy and not worry about someone seeing him.

His group of first-year Hufflepuffs was led to their dorms, which were located next to the kitchens. Their house was located next to the kitchen in the bowels of the castle, which was right below the Great Hall.

As they walked there, Harry could see how useful their centrally located house would be and how easy it would be to get around.

However, it turned out that actually getting into their common room was more difficult than Harry had expected. For to get inside, they would need to bang on the tops of various barrels in a precise order or risk not getting in and being doused with vinegar as a result. Thankfully, it wasn't too difficult of a pattern to learn.

The inside of Hufflepuff's common room was warm and cozy and decorated in black and yellow, which went very nicely with his cloak. There were many couches and chairs configured for both large and small groups to sit at. Multiple fireplaces were also strewn about to keep them comfortable and warm with all of that cold and harsh stone surrounding them, though there were magnificently embroidered tapestries and plush rugs littered about. The walls had also been charmed to show various parts of the castle grounds since they were below ground and thus unable to see anything but dirt and rock.

Professor Sprout, their Head of House, was also present as they entered for the first time. The woman had a habit of wanting to make the first night as easy-going as possible and thought that welcoming the new students personally would help to achieve that.

"Welcome to Huffelpuff," she said in a very cheerful voice.

The woman had rosy cheeks and a pear-shaped figure that made her look more round because of her short height. But it was hard to notice what she looked like since the positive energy that rolled off her was infectious. It was also possible that the woman had never frowned in her entire life.

"Congratulations on being sorted here. I wish you a very warm start to your time in the castle. Also, I thought I would give you a spot of good news, seeing as how tomorrow would normally be a school day since it is a Monday. However, we try and give students at least a day to get their bearings before school starts so they don't get as lost as they did before. Therefore, even though you will get your class schedules tomorrow, the term will officially begin on Tuesday."

Even the upper years, who had been expecting this, were visibly excited.

When she saw there were no questions she continued.

"Also, please take advantage of your Prefects. Fifth, sixth, and seventh years each have a male and female Prefect to assist the house and you can go to them with any questions. My door will be open as well, but I encourage you to see them first or work out your problems by yourself. Finally, I would be most displeased to see someone slacking off as we are known for our work ethic."

The woman finished by trying to stare them down, which didn't exactly work since she was too nice a person.

At any rate, Harry liked her instantly and then she soon allowed the Prefects to show them to their dormitories.

Harry was excited to discover that everyone got his or her own room. Remus had mentioned that Gryffindors shared a dormitory among each year. An older student had then explained to Harry that since Ravenclaw and Gryffindor got the views because they were in towers, Slytherins and Hufflepuffs got their own rooms to even it out. They also had more space to work with in this part of the castle.

Harry didn't care what the reason was. This way, Kaa wouldn't have to hide all the time in his trunk and could roam about free in Harry's room; it was a perfect solution!

Quickly, Harry went to the room that was assigned to him and was delighted to see that his trunks had already been brought up to the castle. The rest of his belongings that he had carried in his satchel were quickly deposited and he then repositioned his trunks in his new room to rest against the wall, side-by-side. His small room consisted of a comfortable looking single bed with a black comforter that had a badger embroidered on it with yellow highlights and a yellow trim. He also had a small wooden dresser and a well-worn desk that was just right for one person, though it came with an uncomfortable looking chair.

Harry figured he would be doing most of his work inside one of his two libraries, depending on what he would be working on. He was still extremely pleased with the privacy that this individual room provided for him and Kaa. It would be nice not having to worry whether someone would ask questions as to why he had two trunks and went into them all of the time. It would also be beneficial not to worry about accidentally bringing up his notes regarding Voldemort or Horcruxes - or some of his darker books that he had brought with him from Grimmauld Place under the noses of Walburga and Orion.

Which he had retrieved with the help of Kreacher, who couldn't refuse a direct order to retrieve the books that Harry had specifically requested; though, he would try to never abuse his power over the elf.

Once his room was set, he changed into a comfortable pair of pajamas and laid Kaa out on his bed. He then busied himself with putting a few more things away before he too stretched out on his bed.

Even though he desperately wanted to try out the Marauder's Map, he was too tired and quite frankly was having trouble keeping his eyes open after his busy day. The amount of food that he had eaten at dinner was also not helping matters and was in fact making him even more agreeable to sleep.

Therefore, he set the map to the side and his last thoughts were that he would play with it tomorrow.

The next day Harry woke at his usual time. It was early but he felt refreshed and psyched for what the day would bring.

He knew it was likely too early for other people to be up and so he excitedly grabbed the map and leaned against his headboard.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he intoned as he pointed his wand in the center of the map.

His eyes were darting around the parchment, hopeful to see a change this time. Barely a second after he had finished, ink had come to life and had begun to form into a readable script.

 _Messrs_

 _Moony, Wormtail,_

 _Padfoot, & Prongs_

 _Purveyors of Aids to Magical_

 _Mischief-Makers_

 _are proud to present_

 _THE MARAUDER'S MAP_

His site was fixed on the names, and he stared longingly at the mention of Prongs and Moony.

In the past few days he had been able to make real progress on reversing his abhorrence of Sirius, but he still had mixed feelings about him. On one hand, Sirius hadn't betrayed his family, and Harry really didn't care that he had killed Pettigrew. What bothered him was the notion that the man had killed thirteen innocent people – which was not justifiable in Harry's mind. Wormtail had deserved what had happened to him, for he was a traitor and had cost people their lives. That man deserved no pity or feelings of remorse.

Harry snapped out of his thoughts and focused on the parchment again and opened it up to reveal a complete blueprint of every room.

'Well not every room,' Harry thought dryly if he now had to find this Chamber of Secrets.

Though, that statement was lost as the castle came to life and he began to note just how vast the castle really was. Little dots that were attached to labels, identifying Hogwarts' occupants also began to come to life.

It was amazing; all the rooms close to him were bedrooms and he could see the names of some of his fellow Hufflepuffs that he had just sorted with. Neville Longbottom was in the room next to him and Zacharias Smith was across the way.

From there, he traced his way back to the common room and saw that it was sparsely populated as it was very early in the morning. Though the name Cedric Diggory jumped out at him for some reason.

Time passed by rapidly as Harry studied different portions of the castle and noted the various routes that he could take to get to the places that he knew that he would frequent. He had then checked in on Minerva and Remus who were seated in their own rooms, or sleeping. Now that he thought about it, he didn't think he could determine whether someone was sitting or lying down or even just standing there.

It wasn't like the map showed furniture.

Dumbledore seemed to be a pacer as his name just kept going around his desk in a circle. Over and over again.

And very few people were outside of their common rooms or faculty quarters.

From there, Harry scanned the other houses and he had spent time noting where he could have been placed within Slytherin and Ravenclaw and was again glad for his single room when he saw five of the first-year Ravenclaw boys sharing a room.

Finally, he moved to the Gryffindor Tower and checked in on those first years and noted some of the names as he had done with the others: Seamus Finnigen, Dean Thomas, Ronald Weasley, Peter Pettigrew…

'Peter Pettigrew. PETER PETTIGREW!' His eyes bulged and his breathing became shallow as his heart started to race.

"It's not possible," he whispered to himself again and again.

Could there have been someone else with the same name? Could the map be wrong? He needed Remus and he needed him now.

'What do I need?' he thought as he took a minute to gather himself before running out the door.

Eventually he retrieved Kaa and his invisibility cloak, and put on a light rob over his pajamas.

Of course, the map remained in his hand and his wand was stowed inside his robe. He would need help in finding Remus' quarters.

Then, he raced down to the common room, barely looking out for anyone as he had seen that most students were still in their rooms. However, the next thing he knew was that he had slammed into someone quite hard and together they tumbled to the ground. Limbs and arms were tangled and Harry had ended up on top of the unknown person. Whoever it had been was much taller and bigger than he was.

It had taken both a few seconds to recover from the wind getting knocked out of them. Kaa was hissing slightly but had managed to avoid being hit as he was on Harry's arm.

Once Harry had regained his breath, he began to immediately apologize to the person that he had steamrolled.

"I'm so sorry, I was in a hurry and didn't see you… Are you all right? I'm so sorry." Harry said very quickly as he offered to help the other boy up.

A small grunt was heard as the other boy hoisted himself up with Harry's help. He was definitely taller and had broad shoulders. Harry would have guessed a third or fourth year based on his size. He had short and messy sandy colored hair with grey eyes and chiseled facial features that made him very handsome.

"It's okay, don't worry about it, just slow down in the future will you. Where are you headed to in such a hurry anyways? Most everyone should still be in bed at this time."

The boy with grey eyes paused a moment to look Harry over.

"Harry Potter, right?"

Harry shook his head; he had momentarily forgotten where he had been heading towards in such a rush when the other boy smiled.

"Cedric Diggory, pleased to meet you."

Cedric offered his hand and harry tentatively shook it. A jolt of warmth spread through his body, much like when Kaa was attached to him. Cedric noticed it as well as his eyes widened ever so slightly. Their handshake lingered slightly longer than normal, as both were slow to remove their hands from the unexpected but comforting sensation. He didn't have long to think about what had just happened or how great a smile Cedric had because of Cedric's next question.

"Where are you headed to again?"

Harry began to tense up as the stress of what he had just discovered returned.

"I need to see Remus, er, Professor Lupin immediately. He is my guardian and this is very important."

Cedric thought for a moment.

"Do you know where his quarters are located?"

Harry paused, not wanting to give away knowledge of the map so quickly.

Thankfully, Cedric misinterpreted the expression on his face and he offered to take the first year himself. It was perfect in Harry's mind.

"Thanks, but we need to hurry," Harry accepted graciously.

They exited the common room and Cedric led Harry to where the Defense Against the Dark Art's classes were held, which were very close to Remus' personal quarters.

Cedric had asked about Harry's time in the castle so far, but he was even more interested in what his conversation with the Sorting Hat had been like since it had gone on longer than any of the other students.

"Oh, we were chatting on where I could go… I have qualities that would see me in any house. We had to get nitpicky." Harry replied honestly.

A small smile appeared on his lips as he was enjoying getting to know this other boy. Kaa had commented on how the other boy seemed to have calmed Harry down, somewhat. He thought it was interesting.

Cedric didn't have a chance to ask another question because they arrived at their destination and Harry immediately started to knock on the door.

"Harry, what's wrong?" Remus said after seeing the look on Harry's face. He knew right away that something wasn't right, but he had no idea how Cedric figured into all of this.

"Mr. Diggory, thank you for…" was all Remus could get out before Harry had shoved the map, which was centered on the section showing Gryffindor Tower, right in front of him.

His eyes took on a yellow tinge and his knuckles turned white as his fingers dug into the map.

He looked to Harry and it was clear that he was having a hard time remaining in control of his emotions.

"Stay here, I must go to Dumbledore and call for Amelia Bones. Mr. Diggory, may I impose on you to remain with Harry until I return? This is extremely important."

Remus had to practically restrain himself from cursing in front of the boys.

"Of course, Sir," though Cedric was slightly startled at the immediate change in the man since Remus was no longer the easy-going professor.

Remus was able to regain some measure of control because he fiercely hugged Harry and whispered in his ear that he would get to the bottom of this before bolting out the door.

Harry didn't know what to think and he didn't know what any of this meant. Was Pettigrew alive? So, then Sirius didn't kill him? But that led to questions about whether Sirius had then killed those thirteen Muggles or if they were alive too. Why was Pettigrew even here? That didn't make any sense – why come out of hiding. His head was spinning and he was starting to breathe quickly from the rapid-fire rate in which he was asking himself questions.

He had started to hyperventilate slightly when a hand touched his shoulder.

"Harry, are you okay?"

Cedric had genuine concern in his eyes.

Harry shook his head slightly from side to side as he tried to get his breathing under control.

Cedric didn't know what to think. It was obvious that something very important and serious had just happened since he had never seen his professor act like that. He was starting to feel bad for Harry, who was struggling to get a hold of his emotions, but didn't really know what he could do to help.

Ultimately, Cedric could only be supportive in this moment as Harry turned involuntarily into Cedric's body. He did his best to try to soothe the younger boy by rubbing circles into Harry's back as, hoping that Harry could get a hold on things.

' _Youngling, Remus is dealing with this. Whatever happens, it will be ok. There is no sense worrying over something that you have no control over_.'

' _I know, it was just momentarily overwhelming. I want to know what is going on_.'

"Who is Amelia Bones?" Harry broke the silence, suddenly realizing just how close he was to the other boy. And it was too much for him at the moment, and he took a step back before moving over to the couch and sitting.

Cedric followed him while answering his question.

"Amelia is the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, I think."

Cedric didn't want to get involved but he was curious as to why Amelia would need to be summoned. His curiosity eventually got the better of him.

Harry sighed. He felt so much calmer around Cedric and being with him was very easy, but he didn't really know anything about him. Nor did he know what was really going on but he had to give the other boy something.

"I gave Remus some information that I had just found out that shouldn't exist and he went to investigate. I know some things but they are kind of personal; however, I just don't know how they all fit together. I expect whatever it is will be in the papers, and if you still want to know, we can talk about it then?"

Cedric nodded, and Harry added his appreciation for the other boy's company.

"But thanks for bringing me here; it's helpful not being alone right now."

"Hey, don't worry about that. Puffs take care of each other. Anyways, I didn't mean to pry into sensitive issues."

Cedric leaned back into the couch and then both were silent for a few minutes.

After thinking about how to get Harry's mind focused on something else, Cedric then began telling him all about the classes that he would take and what to expect and about Quidditch. Harry found out that Cedric would be going out for the house team this year.

Harry appreciated Cedric's attempt at distracting him and he let himself become enchanted with how he talked and the way his voice sounded. But most of all, his laugh was wonderful.

Minutes turned into hours and soon, both were extremely hungry and Cedric ventured down into the kitchens and brought them back both some sandwiches and a pitcher of pumpkin juice.

After they had eaten, they resumed their discussion and it got to be quite late in the day.

Harry again thanked Cedric for giving up so much of his time, but the other boy assured him that he was enjoying himself and didn't mind in the least. He had been truly interested in hearing about Harry's experiences within the Muggle world.

It was late when Remus returned, his mind reeling from everything that had happened that day. So much was now going to be changed because of what had been uncovered.

It had taken longer than he had originally thought when he had left Harry and Cedric because the information that they had stumbled upon needed to be dealt with immediately.

Remus entered the living room and saw that the boys were picking at more sandwiches that Cedric had retrieved. Though, from the moment that Cedric saw Remus' face, he knew that something terrible had happened and it made him feel even more for the boy that he had spent all day getting to know.

Harry had reached the same conclusion and had gotten up and gone over to Remus, while Cedric quietly excused himself.

Harry was standing right in front of Remus when the older man sighed, not knowing how to begin this conversation.

But he would have to tell him since it would be all over the front page of the Daily Prophet in the morning.

At least he knew that Dumbledore was already going to cancel classes the next day.

Harry already had a lot of attention placed on him and this would undoubtedly add to it.

The only thing he could do was to hug Harry for the moment; they would have all night to deal with it privately.

"Remus…" Harry started, just wanting to get it over with.

It was easy to see that something had happened that had shaken the man to his very core. His eyes were red and his face looked haggard.

"Harry…" was all he could get out before the tears started again, tears for his friend that had suffered in Azkaban.

Tears for hearing the full betrayal from someone that he had been so close to. Tears for Harry who would soon find all of this out.

Remus gathered what strength he could and whispered in Harry's ears, "Sirius is innocent of everything."

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 **Let me know what you think and thanks for reading!**


	13. The Truth Comes Out

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, this chapter gets some things settled with for Harry and he will soon begin to have an easier time with things.

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

Harry ended up staying with Remus for a good portion of the evening. It was the only thing that felt right after Remus had reappeared looking like he had. Though it did take some time for the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor to regain some form of composure that allowed him to fill in Harry on what he had found out over the course of the day. But if there was anyone that could understand what Remus had been through, it was Harry; for the first-year Hufflepuff's life had been changing so quickly recently that his mindset was primarily focused on just rolling with the changes as they happened.

Harry's mind would not have been able to handle everything otherwise.

A few minutes after he had arrived, Remus took Harry by the hand and led him into the living area to sit on the couch for what he was about to tell him. The boy had a right to know, never mind just how sensitive and delicate the topic was - even if Remus had no idea where to begin his tale.

However, the only thing that came to Remus' mind once they were seated was to begin at the precise moment in which his eyes had gleaned Peter Pettigrew's name off of the Marauder's Map. So that was where he decided to start.

"Harry, one thing that you should know is that the map never lies. From the moment I saw his name on the map I knew that it was no trick and that there was no other explanation except the simple truth that Pettigrew was in fact alive. I didn't even need to consider the possibility that another student had the same name… I would have noticed that particular name during the sorting."

Remus' thought process made complete sense to Harry and it validated his reasoning in thinking that perhaps someone could have innocently shared that name. However, it was nice to know that this map would not play any jokes on him in the future and that he could now trust what it showed. It was even more powerful than he had assumed and he hoped that he would eventually get it back. A part of him had grown attached to that piece of parchment that his father had helped to create.

Remus continued on despite Harry's inner musings.

"After I left you and Cedric, I went straight to Dumbledore and told him about the map and what it indicated. I told him that we should have Aurors - our police force - on hand and suggested Amelia Bones, who is the head of The Department of Magical Law Enforcement as well. Dumbledore agreed given the severity of the situation and he quickly called for her and also for Severus and Minerva to join us. Of course, the fact that I had already shared with him what your parent's letters revealed about Sirius and Pettigrew only helped to expedite our conversation."

Remus paused to see how Harry was doing so far.

"I'm fine, Remus, really. I just want to know the whole story."

At this point, Harry was getting used to all of these revelations and just preferred to get them dealt with so he could process it and move on to the next one.

Harry fidgeted slightly and broke contact with Remus' hand to run his own hands through his hair, shaking off the forthcoming sleepiness and preparing himself to the answers that he was about to get to some of his questions.

"You should know that Amelia takes her job very seriously. Her niece is Susan Bones, who I believe was also sorted into Hufflepuff this year, and she came at once after Dumbledore's brief explanation of the events."

Harry had been aware of how you could fire-call someone using something called a Floo network, and it had been one of the many forms of wizarding communications and ways to travel that Remus had made him aware of.

"When we were finally all gathered in his office, we then discussed the situation and Minerva was asked why the name Peter Pettigrew had been next to Ron Weasley's name since she is the head of Gryffindor house. She remarked that the only thing she could think of was that the newest Weasley had brought a rat as a pet."

Remus shifted in his chair and rubbed his eyes with his hands.

"Harry, you know the nicknames that we used with each other – and they were related to the animals that we transformed into – willingly or unwillingly in my case. Peter's name was Wormtail because he could turn into a rat. It suddenly became clear and I informed them that he was an unregistered animagus; they didn't question how I knew that because of how close we had been."

He took a deep breath before continuing.

"We walked to Gryffindor Tower and I disillusioned myself and crept into their dormitory while they were all thankfully still sleeping. In this case it was a good thing that Gryffindors have a penchant for sleeping late. We didn't want to risk alerting Peter that we were onto him by all going in and I went in since I had known him best while the others stood guard. I stunned the rat and placed him in an unbreakable box and we carried him back to Dumbledore's office with no one the wiser."

Remus stood up, unable to sit for this part of the tale.

"Now, there are spells that exist that can revert an animagus back into human form. We removed him from the box and soon Pettigrew was restrained to a chair and woken up. I also filled them in on the fact that Pettigrew was really the Secret Keeper. At this point, Amelia suggested that the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge be informed at once. She knew that he would need to be here for the interrogation if anything was going to be done about Sirius. Snape went to retrieve a truth potion called Veritaserum, which compels the user to tell the truth and renders them unable to lie. However, we were not expecting the extent to what Pettigrew soon revealed."

Remus paused to take a sip of coffee from a breakfast platter one of the house elves had brought since it was noticed that both were missing from breakfast. He encouraged Harry to eat some of the scones but all Harry could stomach right now was some tea.

"Pettigrew confessed everything. How he was the Secret Keeper and that he betrayed your parents to the Dark Lord."

Remus was looking into Harry's eyes at the mention of the betrayal and had moved over to Harry in case he needed comfort.

"It's okay, Remus. Well, I mean… it's not okay what happened to them. Being betrayed by someone they thought was their friend is horrible, beyond words even. I never got to know them because of it. But, I made peace with it. Back when I thought it had been Sirius. I had to… with everything that has been going on. I can't remain in the past when so much depends on right now and the future…"

A slow sigh escaped Harry's lips and he leaned towards Remus so that his head was resting on his guardian's shoulder.

"I would have liked to have known them, but there's still hope. I have their letters and, hopefully, they have a portrait in Gringotts. It may not be much, but it means everything to me. It's all I have."

At this, a single tear fell down Harry's cheek. He really had moved on from the betrayal, no matter who had caused it. He had liked to think that magic allowed his parents to watch over him and he would do his best to remind himself that their blood flowed through his veins. He couldn't let his mind get trapped on what could have been – because, deep down, he was afraid that he would never be able to return to the present.

Some time passed before Remus continued his tale; he was more concerned with using his left hand to rub Harry's neck. He never expected to have a charge to look after – and most of the time he didn't know what to do. Especially when he himself was hurting immensely on the inside. He had lost his entire life too with all of this. But most of all, he hated that Harry had such weight, such a burden on his shoulders that he couldn't take away. That this young man had had to grow up as fast as he did was difficult for Remus to accept. He was afraid that Harry would be isolated by his peers because he couldn't relate to them – their problems were miles below where Harry's started. And while he was glad that Harry seemed to have the mental capacity and maturity to deal with everything, there was only so much a person, any person, could take before the overwhelming weight of it all would become overbearing and break them.

Knowing that he needed to be there for Harry was the only thing that kept him going right now; Harry's needs were more important than his.

But Remus didn't know how to continue, and told Harry as much. Harry then suggested Remus, 'just remove the bandaid as quick as possible so they could process it, deal with it, and move on.'

And so that was what Remus did for the second time.

"The Dark Lord cornered Pettigrew one night and tortured him for information, asking about the whereabouts of Sirius and your parents. Pettigrew had cowered in fear and made a deal to spare his life in exchange for providing information. He told the Dark Lord everything and then he willingly joined his side after seeing his display of power; he didn't think how anyone could challenge it. Then that night happened…"

Remus squeezed Harry's hand.

"According to Pettigrew, Sirius tracked him down the next day in a busy street in London. He was enraged and Pettigrew saw an out, his only out since he couldn't hope to match Sirius in a duel, and took it. He put on a show for the many witnesses and had screamed that Sirius had betrayed James and Lily, before faking his death by blasting a large crater in the ground behind him and transforming into a rat. Now, the only thing they had found was a finger that had belonged to Pettigrew and a manic Sirius, who no doubt had gone into shock at being bested by Pettigrew after just losing your parents. When the Aurors arrived, he was sitting on the ground rocking back and forth chanting madly, 'I did it, I killed them.'"

Remus had to take a deep breath as the tears were threatening to return.

"I think that Sirius was feeling guilty for not being the Secret Keeper. I bet he had convinced James and Lily to switch to Peter at the last minute, because no one would have thought that anyone but Sirius would have been entrusted with that kind of power. He was taken to Azkaban without a trial because his ramblings were seen as an admission of guilt."

After hearing that, Harry got up from the couch and walked over to get a scone. Remus suspected it was more for something to do to keep his brain from thinking too much about these events than the fact that he was hungry.

"Pettigrew then informed everyone that he had gone down into the sewers to think about his next move. He needed to be out of the way but close enough to get continual information and he chose a wizarding family based on being too disorganized to think too much about a rat like him. He went with the Weasleys, who never seemed to notice how long this particular rat seemed to live – not with as many children as they had. Ron Weasley, a Gryffindor now and the youngest son, brought him to Hogwarts as a pet and that was why you saw him in the dormitories."

"I see," Harry supplied half-heartily, truly tired of how things had been going. He was at the point where the past month had been a constant rollercoaster and he was over it. He didn't have it in him to be surprised or shocked or anything, really. So much had happened that his brain just wasn't able to process it anymore.

"So what's going to happen, Remus?" Harry asked going through the motions of putting preserves on his scone that he had been playing with for over five minutes. If anyone had walked in they would have thought Harry was just eating jam as hardly any of the scone remained visible.

"Amelia and the Minister agreed that Sirius would get a formal trial by putting Pettigrew on the stand. It is more to improve Sirius' reputation than anything. The sentiment when he was put away was that he was the Dark Lord's right hand man, and a trial will help show he was innocent and Pettigrew is the guilty one. They will give Pettigrew more Veritaserum at the trial and he will tell his tale again, Sirius won't even have to talk or really be there."

The next part was going to be difficult for Remus to say.

"Harry…"

Harry looked up and Remus went over to the table and sat down next to him.

"There is a good chance that staying in Azkaban will have done some permanent damage to Sirius. The Dementors that are there will have forced him to relive all of his worst nightmares again and again. Some prisoners go mad there after a year… it is likely Sirius will be in no position to take his place as your Godfather and will be going to St. Mungos to see mind healers and receive treatment, if any can even be given."

"Oh… " Harry was in shock, both from hearing this and from his increasing desire to sleep. This wizard's prison really seemed a very worse alternative to anything the muggles had ever come up with, even some forms of torture. And that was saying something.

Remus needed to get Harry thinking about some of the good things that were going on in his life and tried steering the topic onto more positive themes.

"Now, you know we put in paperwork to make me your official guardian?"

Harry nodded.

"The thing is: if me being a werewolf were to ever become known, I could no longer be responsible for you – there are laws against it."

This was slightly going against his hope for a better conversation, but he needed to make Harry aware of this and then he could mention what he hoped would better Harry's spirits.

Harry just nodded his head though his disgust at that vile and bigoted law was evident in his facial expression.

Remus had mentioned this to Harry before – but now things were slightly different. Remus would always be there for Harry, but Sirius would also need someone to look after him. He needed to make sure that no matter what happened, Harry would always be taken care of – and he would do everything in his power to make sure of that.

"After Amelia and Cornelius left to inform the Daily Prophet, the four of us talked about adding another guardian to the paperwork. Just in case something happened to me."

Remus wanted to take this slow and not cause Harry to have any more unnecessary shocks or discomfort.

"How do you feel about that, Harry? Do you have a preference? Minerva and even Snape mentioned they would be more than willing."

Remus hoped to show Harry how much other people cared about him. The most important thing to Remus was Harry and he was desperate to comfort his cub.

Harry didn't know how to feel. It had been an adjustment going from life at the Dursleys where he had never really had an advocate, someone to fight for him, to Grimmauld Place and basically gaining a family. And now he had multiple people to choose from to be his surrogate parents. There were multiple people now that wanted to look out from him.

"I suppose Minnie-"

Remus snorted.

"I mean, Minerva." Harry said quickly.

"Please don't tell her I said that."

Though Harry really wasn't sorry, especially considering that if she was one of his guardians than it would be understandable that he had an endearing name for her.

"You certainly are James' son – and I will keep that between us, and make the necessary changes."

He ran his fingers through Harry's untamed mop of hair.

Harry smiled at Remus. They began talking about how the week was going to unfold. Specifically, when would the trial be and when would Sirius be home.

"I'm not sure how long this will take, Harry. I know the Minister will want to be seen as being proactive and correcting a past wrong – he will not want to be associated with any of the wrongdoing. I do know that Sirius is being removed from Azkaban now and will go to St. Mungos for treatment. But I don't know how long that will take. His presence at the trial, again, will be a formality. Pettigrew will be the one getting grilled. I expect it to be this weekend… the details may already be in the Prophet."

On that note, Remus called for a House Elf and asked if there was a copy of the Prophet floating around somewhere that he could have.

A squeak and a pop later and Remus had that night's special edition. As he expected, the announcement had been a bombshell.

It seemed that Rita Skeeter had been involved with the reporting. He hesitated showing Harry as he had wanted to make sure Rita's inflammatory style had not done unnecessary harm, but Harry would have none of that babying or sugarcoating and gave Remus a look that said, 'try it.'

So together they read through the article.

 ** _Peter Pettigrew Found Alive: Sirius Black To Get Trial!_**

By Rita Skeeter

 _My dear readers: brace yourself for what I am about to tell you. This morning I was enjoying a late cup of tea at home when I had a Floo request from the Minister of Magic and the Director of the DMLE! I was momentarily caught off guard by their unexpected presence but immediately let them through. They were firm that they wanted to get to the bottom of this and my jaw was soon on the floor with shock at what they told me. Peter Pettigrew had just been found, alive, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry no less. Apparently, he had been an unregistered animagus, a serious thing in and of itself, and had found refuge with a wizarding family for 10 years and had been brought to school this year as a pet!_

 _Pettigrew was interrogated by Hogwarts' staff; led by none other than Albus Dumbledore and Amelia Bones representing the Ministry. Cornelius Fudge and Amelia Bones had both been summoned immediately to act as a witness after Peter had been discovered. I am told he confessed shocking and dreadful things while under Veritaserum, a ministry-controlled substance, and something you cannot lie under._

 _I must warn you that his confession is heartbreaking! Peter Pettigrew betrayed James and Lily Potter and gave their location to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. This betrayal was made even worse because the Potters had used a Fidelius Charm to go into hiding. Now, a Fidelius Charm is old and powerful magic and allows a secret to be stored in someone's very soul. In this case, the secret was where the Potters had gone into hiding. Only Pettigrew, being the Secret Keeper could tell someone and let them in on the secret. It was thought that Sirius Black had been the Secret Keeper, but other evidence confirms that Pettigrew was in fact the one trusted with their safety. Such betrayal to come from someone you entrusted the life of your family to is the lowest of lows._

 _Now, another shocker: Sirius didn't kill anyone that day in London! Again, it was Pettigrew! Peter confessed to using a variant of the Bombarda Curse to create a crater in the street where 13 muggles died and then transformed into a rat and took to the sewers!_

 _How sensational these turn of events. A formal trial will be scheduled this Saturday for Pettigrew to be put away and for Sirius to be officially declared innocent. Sirius will be re-cooperating from his unfortunate stay in Azkaban at St Mungos, but it remains unclear if he will be able to perform his duties as Godfather of Harry James Potter, the Boy Who Lived._

 _One may ask: how did Sirius get sentenced to Azkaban? Minister Fudge and Director Bones discovered that he didn't have a trial in the first place! It was likely that he was found at the scene of the crime during a time when it was best to ask questions after the fact – though in his case, he was simply forgotten and wasted away his best years in Azkaban._

 _The Minister wanted to make it clear that a thorough investigation of all prisoners in Azkaban will be started immediately to make sure that previous errors from prior administrations were caught. Cornelius has vowed to protect the safety of Wizarding Britain and ensure that the right thing was done and will always be done._

 _One has to ask how Harry Potter feels in all of this? To know that your Godfather was falsely imprisoned and might be unable to be there for you… To know that a good friend of your parents betrayed them in such a manner… The poor boy._

 _I will of course be providing a recap of the trial and will provide any updates to this unexpected and shocking event._

''That cow,'' Remus thought out loud.

"Well, that is one way to put it." Harry uttered very matter-of-factly after digesting what she had written.

Remus agreed.

"She certainly has a way of infusing scandal into the most mundane of stories, she must have had difficulty containing all of the drool that no doubt appeared with this debacle…"

Though to be honest, Remus had expected the article to be much worse. The best he could figure was that the story had been so outlandish that she hadn't needed to embellish anything.

"Don't think I'm taking Rita's advice, Harry" Remus said seriously, "but, how are you doing with all of this? Everyone in school already knows about this."

Harry considered it for a moment. While it was something that he wasn't particularly pleased about, far from it actually, he didn't see anything that he could do about the situation.

"There isn't much I can do, Remus. It's not like this is new to me, well here, in the wizarding world – you know? I think being 'the Boy Who Lived' will persist for a lot longer than this, and hopefully this particular incident will be over with soon. Though I am not overly fond of leaving this room at the moment and facing everyone. I did bring my father's cloak and could make it back to Hufflepuff without too much trouble."

He looked to Remus, "What do you think I should do?"

"I think it would be wise to give it some time. I can go and get your time table and then you can stay here or go back to Hufflepuff if you want until then."

Harry nodded.

"Ah, and before I forget," Remus pulled out a parchment from his pocket and handed it to Harry.

"I explained to Dumbledore that your father and I helped make that in our youth and that it rightfully belongs to you. He was curious about it but you are the owner of it – and it would just end up returning to your vault if you were to be separated from it for an extended amount of time because of Lily's charm work. Though he does ask that you do not abuse the map."

He gave Harry his best Dumbledore expression, which had its intended effect of making Harry laugh. Pretending to have a long beard and stroking it contemplatively was enough to make anyone chuckle.

Harry was finally able to have a minute to himself while Remus went to retrieve his timetable. When the man returned, Harry thanked Remus and assured him that he would be fine for classes the next day. Harry also wanted to make sure that his guardian was dealing with everything appropriately.

Remus had replied that he would try to make it to St. Mungos tonight to see how Sirius was but he wasn't expecting much.

A hug from Remus and a quick check of the map to see what the least populated route was that he could take soon found Harry under his cloak and heading to Hufflepuff.

Harry removed the cloak when he was in his room and placed Kaa on the foot of his bed before retrieving his toiletry bag. He waited until the hour was late and the path was clear and then moved to the bathroom.

Harry stepped under the warm water and just let the water soak into his skin for a few minutes, reveling in the relaxing sensation. He quickly washed himself and exited the bathroom, not wanting to chance someone happening upon him – he wasn't in the mood to deal with others quite yet.

He changed into some comfortable clothes and climbed into bed and concentrated on clearing his mind and sorting through all of the new memories and dealing with a few of the old ones. He had decided that he would not try and sort through all of his memories from the past at one time but would deal with a few of them every night when he would sort through his new memories. This way would be much more manageable.

He was barely at it for more than ten minutes when he began to run out of energy – sorting one's mind was extremely tiring – and he soon fell into a deep sleep.

Which wasn't a terrible thing as he did have classes the next day.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think and thanks for reading!**


	14. Letting Someone In

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, this chapter is his first day of classes and an opportunity to explain some things to Cedric.

Let me know what you think. I love reviews, especially the ones that provide helpful critiques :)

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything! JK I love you.**

* * *

Kaa woke Harry up the next day just in time for breakfast; it was a little later than usual but with all the recent events the snake thought Harry could use a little bit of a lie in. Which was just what he needed.

After finally waking up, Harry did need to go through his morning routine a bit quicker to make it out on time. But as Harry was heading out to the bathroom he was surprised to find two folded sheets of parchment that had been stuffed under his door.

 _Harry,_

 _I just wanted you to know that I'm here if you ever want to talk about anything – us Puffs have to support one another, right? Anyways, I never got the chance to tell you at the Welcoming Feast that our parents used to know each other. My parents were Aurors and worked with your dad. My Gran says that we used to play together once or twice when we were very little. The other first years seem nice and we all have your back._

 _Hope to see you at classes today,_

 _Neville Longbottom_

Harry was honestly surprised: that must have taken a lot for Neville, considering how shy he had seemed at the Welcoming Feast. A smile appeared on Harry's face thinking that it might not be as difficult for him to show his face during his first day of classes as he had previously thought. If Neville had the courage to reach out to him, Harry would find it in him to show his face. He quickly checked the time and saw that breakfast would be starting soon and he pocketed Neville's missive and started with the second piece of parchment.

 _Harry,_

 _I don't really know what to say. I don't want to pry but just want to make sure you are okay after everything. I'm here if you just need someone to talk to or hang out with to get your mind off of everything. I enjoyed our day together and hope that it was able to get your mind off of things somewhat._

 _Cedric_

Harry was blushing stupidly. He couldn't deny that he had enjoyed himself immensely despite the serious matters of the previous day. Cedric had that air about him, and it was more than just because Harry found the other boy attractive. Even though Harry was more advanced than others his age, he was still eleven and his view of Cedric was more centered on Harry's hope that he would one day grow to be a similar person as the other boy.

But that was only a small part of Harry's growing infatuation with him, the main thing that drew Harry in was just how comfortable spending the day with him had been. Despite his worry and doubt at what Pettigrew's name on the map would mean, Cedric had been able to calm Harry's nerves and take his mind off of things. And then there was still the unexplained feeling that was produced when their hands met. At the very least, Harry hoped that Cedric would turn into a great friend, for he seemed very genuine and easy-going.

Perhaps he had made the right choice with Hufflepuff after all.

With the letter out of the way, Harry finished his readying himself in the bathroom and then headed down to the Great Hall.

* * *

Breakfast went by in a blur; the beginning of term thankfully took away most of what impact Rita's article had on the student populace. Whatever curiosity regarding the Boy Who Lived remained was quickly absorbed by rumors that Pettigrew had belonged to the Weasley family. Which meant that very few people paid Harry any more attention than his title of the Boy Who Lived would have otherwise dictated that he received.

However, Harry did the get the distinct impression that sooner or later people would become interested in how he was taking it after the immediate excitement and novelty of it all wore off.

While Harry was finishing his plate of food before him he did managed to catch Cedric's eyes and smiled appreciatively to acknowledge the letter. Cedric tipped his head and Harry made a mental note to at some point take the other boy up on his offer, only he did want to get settled in and into the routine of his new classes and subject material.

Towards the end of the meal, a nervous chatter became the predominant sound as most of the first years, regardless of house, picked absentmindedly at their remaining food. Many of them had not been able to eat as much as they were used to, which only elicited some helpful feedback from the upper years.

"Magic takes energy and you all better eat up to have the strength that your body will need as it adjusts to casting Magic for the first time," a fifth-year Hufflepuff Prefect said to them.

Harry whispered in Neville's ear that it was the truth and soon the majority of the on-edge first years took to their plates with renewed vigor with their remaining time left.

Now that the meal was almost over, Harry turned his thoughts towards the day ahead.

Each day had three class periods in the morning followed by lunch and then four more class periods to finish the day. On this particular day, Harry would start his Hogwarts education with a double block of Potions, which meant that he would be in the dungeon for a little over two hours. Every class was an hour long and there was a fifteen-minute break that allowed students to traverse the sizeable castle to arrive at their next destination.

With that in mind, Harry began to gather his belongings to leave when he caught Remus' glance and saw that his guardian wanted to see him before classes began. Harry waved off Neville and told him to save him a seat and hurried over to Remus as the Great Hall emptied and both students and faculty headed to their first class.

"Excited for your first day of classes?" Remus asked while leading Harry to an abandoned classroom so they wouldn't be disturbed.

"Yeah, I am looking forward to Potions and Transfiguration today. Based on what I have read so far, I also think that Charms and your class will be among my favorites. The books certainly had the most interesting discussions on magic and I am looking forward to learning more of the practical side."

Harry was finding it quite hard to contain his excitement – he was enthralled by studying magic and couldn't wait to absorb it all. The time spent in Grimmauld Place, and actually casting for the first time, was something that he would never forget; it truly was this incredible feeling when magic went through him and he kept being surprised by all that magic could do.

He was also looking forward to classes as a way to get his mind of off other things.

Therefore, it was possible that Harry was slightly overenthusiastic about the upcoming term to compensate for recent events but he really was looking forward to classes; he just loved to learn.

Remus smiled at him, happy that he seemed genuinely happy and excited – which was rare for Harry since he always seemed to be dealing with something. He hated that he had to bring this up but at least it wasn't completely bad news.

"But that's not really why you pulled me aside, is it?"

Harry asked and decided to be blunt again if it got this conversation over with. He assumed Remus didn't want to give him bad news but he had to think that if it was that bad then Remus wouldn't do it right before classes. Harry couldn't see Remus doing that.

Remus had been doing his best at breakfast to project a normal countenance but Harry had seen enough small things to know his mind was preoccupied; it didn't take a genius to discover what was the most likely cause of his musings. Harry's heart had started to speed up and even though he didn't know the man, he hoped that he hadn't suffered too much – though he could only imagine what Sirius was like after being alone for ten years. What would anyone be like after ten years in that place?

"No, I'm afraid not, Harry. Though, it isn't all bad news. Sirius was much better than anyone thought that he would be. Physically, he is in rough shape, but he is lucid and that is more than we could have hoped for at this point. Also, he seemed more or less together last night though understandably not in the best of shape. The healer's first impression of the situation is that there is hope for a full recovery but in all likelihood it will probably be at least a year before he returns to any sense of normalcy. I was expecting to hear much, much worse."

Remus was torn; on the one hand, it had been great having Sirius exceed everyone's expectation, but the reality of the situation was quite painful. His friend had been left to rot without ever receiving a trial and Remus felt guilty for not giving his friend the benefit of the doubt. He should have known that Sirius would never have betrayed James or Lily; however, they were living in a very uncertain time and even though the Dark Lord was gone, they still had to deal with some of his followers and they terror they were causing.

What happened to Frank and Alice Longbottom had unsettled a lot of people in the days following He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's downfall. It had taken a while to ameliorate people's fears after having their newfound sense of security and safety taken away so suddenly and dramatically. No one wanted their family to suffer the same fate as the Potters or the Longbottoms.

Remus had more to share with Harry of a more positive nature.

"Sirius did manage to communicate a few things with me; namely, he had spent most of his time in Azkaban in his animagus form. Apparently, he discovered that dementors have a reduced effect on animals compared with humans because of the different emotional complexities – at least that is what he assumed. The other reason he suspected that he had kept most of his mind intact was that the first thought he had upon waking and going to sleep and always the predominate thought in his head was that he was innocent. The dementors couldn't take that away because it wasn't a happy thought and so never got to suck all of the happiness and good times from him. His realization of being innocent and losing some of the people that he loved most probably helped to shield his mind from constant attack."

Remus knew that it was difficult to convey the concept that one's Godfather had been wrongfully imprisoned for ten years in solitary confinement in an unusual prison; however, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Thankfully, Harry was mature enough to recognize the subtle and overt hardships while knowing that there were some very real and key positive aspects to it as well.

If anything, the more that Harry thought about Dementors and the effect that they had on people, the more he wondered how humane the whole thing was. He suspected that most people were fine with the status quo as long as they didn't have to deal with it directly, at least that was what he had read and observed in the muggle world and didn't think the wizarding world would be immune from basic human nature.

"Do you think he will make it, Remus?" Harry asked, suddenly unwilling to continue his previous train of thought.

He didn't want to think about the negatives anymore; he couldn't. If there was a chance Sirius could come out of this then that was what he was going to focus on.

"I do, Harry. And we can help him with that. I'll see what I can do about visiting him in the evenings and on weekends and perhaps the Headmaster will even allow you to visit St. Mungo's – though we should hold off on that until things settle down. I just want you to concentrate on classes at the moment. I am worried that you are dealing with a lot. In fact, what would you think about seeing a mind healer yourself? It's the wizard equivalent of a therapist – just so you could have someone to talk to about things."

Remus didn't want Harry to think he was going crazy but he had to be the responsible adult in all of this and Harry's health and well-being came first.

Remus took a moment to let Harry process his last statement.

'Well that is convenient', Harry thought. 'Remus must be on the same page that I am.'

"I saw a mind healer for many years after losing your parents and being separated from you and all of my friends. I think it will be a good thing but I don't want to force this on you."

Remus knelt down to Harry's level to look Harry square in the eyes.

"I only want what is best for you," he emphasized before adding, "and it is completely confidential. They are unable to reveal your secrets by undertaking a magical vow."

Harry hung his head in this serious moment, talking over the implications with Kaa.

' _Yes – I think that is a great idea, Harry,'_ his snake added almost immediately since he was aware of Harry's earlier thoughts and was delighted with this opportunity.

' _You need to take care of yourself and work through what has happened now rather than later. Like with your Occlumency: do a little each day. With everything ahead of you, I think this would be very beneficial_.'

Kaa was giving him the sage advice and encouragement that he needed because Harry was uneasy with letting someone he didn't know in on everything and considered it quite different from opening up to someone of his choosing, but he would defer to Remus and Kaa in this regard.

In the end, he knew that this was something that he was going to have to do and with Remus suggesting it, it would make it easier on him. How many eleven year olds willingly asked for therapy?

He shared his decision with Kaa who had slightly squeezed around his arm in a show of support and solidarity.

"Okay, Remus – I'll do it. I trust that if it helped you and if it helps Sirius, I should probably do it as well. Would it be possible to arrange it with the same person that you did it with?"

He trusted Remus and it made him feel better about the entire process knowing that Remus could personally vouch for this other person. It would take away some of his concern about opening up to a complete stranger.

"I'll make some calls, Harry – perhaps this weekend we can arrange a visit in St. Mungo's… Possibly see Sirius as well, depending on how he is doing, of course. It would do no good to introduce either of you until the other one is ready. Hopefully by then the shock of this all will have worn off and all of our heads will be in a better place."

He pulled Harry into a hug and tousled his hair in an endearing gesture before telling him he better get going to Potions; Snape wouldn't like it if he were late.

Harry turned to leave but stopped at the door and hesitated exiting before facing Remus again.

"Thanks for everything, Remus – you have no idea how much it means. I do hope that Sirius recovers and can take up his role as my Godfather but if for some reason that doesn't happen… well, I'm happy I have you. Godfather or not, I still would like you as my guardian."

He smiled, feeling slightly embarrassed but knowing that it was the truth and he wanted Remus to know how much he meant to him.

Remus was beyond touched with Harry's sincere proclamation.

"I would do anything for you Harry; you are my number one priority." Remus said softly while giving his own genuine and heart-felt smile.

Harry noticed that his eyes had started to tear up. Both their eyes had started to tear up in fact.

He nodded, unable to find words that would do a response justice, and left for the dungeons.

The only thought that he focused on during his walk to the underbelly of Hogwarts was how lucky he was to have Remus in his life. And he would have to trust his opinion with this particular mind healer. If he couldn't trust Remus, whom could he trust?

When he arrived to Potions, he quickly joined the empty seat next to Neville and very quickly his thoughts shifted to excitement about all they things that they would learn about in this classroom. Professor Snape soon gave a very dramatic entrance into the room with his silky black cape billowing behind him that stood still only when the Potions Master turned to face the class. A serious expression took over his features.

"Welcome to Potions. I will warn you right now that this will be a difficult class unless you put in the work. And anyone not paying attention will suffer the consequences because you could injure not only yourself but others as well."

It was a very serious and solemn start to their wizarding education but it needed to be given. Snape let those words sink in for a few seconds before continuing.

"Now, Potions is one of the oldest branches of magic. Our ancestors were mixing magical ingredients before waving wands around and what I can teach you here can be some of the most powerful magic that you will ever learn. This is a subtle art though and not everyone has the predisposition to understand the magical essence of different ingredients and the specific ways they can combine and augment the properties of others. At the worst, I expect an 'Acceptable' from everyone on their O.W.L.s, or Ordinary Wizarding Levels, at the end of fifth year, and will only take those with a serious aptitude and 'Outstanding' for years six and seven."

He needed to emphasize what was at stake and this is where he got his less-than-kind reputation: Snape expected hard work and did not tolerate laziness in his classroom. He was true to his word and was known to kick students out of his class, permanently.

Harry gave a slight nod to the professor when his name was called for attendance and he noticed that Snape acted very differently in front of the classroom, but he figured that his interactions with the man had been under very extenuating circumstances. He found Snape to be an amazing teacher who had a demonstrated mastery of the subject and had practically salivated at the thought of being under his tutelage for the next seven years.

Pairing up with Neville allowed Harry to calm the other boy's nerves, for it seemed that Neville that heard quite a few stories about Snape and he was terrified of the man. Harry attempted to allay his fears: he pointed out that Snape seemed dedicated to his craft and would brook nothing less than someone's best.

"As long as you put in the effort, you have nothing to fear," Harry then explained, relaying some of the advice Remus had given him as well as reiterating what Snape had told them in the beginning of class.

In the end, they had managed to turn in a very reasonable potion – one of two exceeds expectations awarded to their class. The other was awarded to a Ravenclaw pair that included a girl with brown hair that was slightly on the frizzy side but pulled into a passable ponytail. Harry understood what having untamed hair was like.

They were quickly introduced to each other, and he was looking forward to meeting this Hermione Granger in the library later in the week for a study group they had arranged on the spot, which Neville was also invited to. It turned out that Neville and Hermione had met on the train and she had helped him locate his wayward frog, Trevor.

At the end of class, Snape asked Harry to stay behind and Hermione and Neville said that they would wait for him outside since they all had Transfiguration next anyways.

"Harry," Snape began when they were the only ones in the room. He was now much friendlier and acted like he had when he was at Grimmauld Place.

"How is everything so far?"

"About fifty-fifty, to be honest, Sir. I feel like I'm fitting into my house and making some friends but I am a little shaky with this whole Pettigrew/Sirius thing… I am really looking forward to classes, though. I think it will be nice to get my mind focused on other things. Great lesson by the way."

"That is about what I expected to hear. Just know that my door is always open. It would seem you have your mother's talent and skill for the subject."

Harry nodded appreciatively. He still had to relay what his mum had asked of him, but now wasn't the time.

"Now, you better get going to your next class."

Harry moved towards the door.

"Oh, and by the way, great job today. Very few people manage an E on the first assignment."

A rare and small upturn of his lips indicated just how pleased Severus was that Harry had seemed to inherit some of his mother's knack for potion-making. Harry had made a very solid start in his opinion. It was getting easier and easier for him to disassociate the boy from James Potter and focus on the large part of Lily that Harry seemed to possess.

The trio had then walked to their next class together and Harry was pleased to see that Neville was starting to come out of his shell a little.

Harry was quite content to discover Transfiguration and was hooked instantly. It was another class that they had shared with the Ravenclaws and it had the added benefit of being taught by Minnie. Though Harry was repeating, 'Minerva, Minerva, Minerva,' over and over again in his mind so as not to mistakenly call her 'Minnie' in front of others.

"Good Morning, class," she welcomed them to her classroom and began instructing them on laws they needed to follow.

They were so important that she told them to write them down and write them as lines to be turned in next class. She was almost as severe as Severus but didn't have quite the menacing reputation that he did.

Harry had been quite impressed by how strict she was with the rules; he could see that it piqued not only his attention but those of several others as well. Most assumed that magic with a wand would be easy and not have many consequences for danger. She described just how serious this branch of magic was and how she had no reservations about asking those with a proclivity for joking around to leave her class until they had regained the proper attitude for serious learning.

Harry had to stifle a laugh, as her bun was as severe as he had ever seen it. The more he had seen Minerva in her element at Hogwarts, the more touched he had been that she had literally rushed to his house when they had been dealing with the Horcrux.

It also didn't hurt for endearing her to some of the students that she had followed up her serious spiel with a demonstration of epic proportions. Seeing someone transform into a cat and back and then proceed to transfigure animals out of desks and even works of art was more than enough to fully capture everyone's undivided attention. They couldn't wait to perform that, though she did remind them that not everyone could be an animagus and the spell work was N.E.W.T. level. They still thought it was wicked.

Their lesson for the day soon began in proper.

"The first bit of transfiguration that we are going to pursue is a basic changing of one substance into another. Each of you has a match and I would like to see you transfigure that into a needle with the incantation we have been practicing as well as the wand movement described in detail on the board… Remember that transfiguration is more than just following the proscribed movements and speaking out loud, you must use your mind to make the change as well."

She set them off to perform the task and Harry had taken a moment to see the majority of the class struggling and not knowing where to even begin. The only success he had even seen so far was that Hermione Granger had managed to turn her match silver.

Channeling the words from his mum, Harry concentrated more on envisioning the match turning into one of the needles that Petunia had been fond of using rather than on the mechanisms of the spell itself. He became so engrossed with imagining the wood turning into metal in his mind that he imagined what it would feel like to prick himself upon the needle.

To his amazement, the match transformed in front of him into the very needle he had been thinking about seconds before. Granted it was a very basic needle, but a needle nonetheless.

"Oh ho!" Minerva practically gushed. She was hovering over Harry's table with enthusiasm.

"Well done, Mr. Potter. Take five points to Hufflepuff for getting that on your first try. Do you feel up to trying to transfigure the needle back into a match? It is the same spell, now mind you, and the key is again visualization."

Others had stopped their own attempts to look in Harry's direction. Hermione had a determined and competitive look in her eyes.

Harry focused his mind again, but instead of visualizing the same exact match that he had transfigured the needle from he imagined a wooden match that was a miniature version of his holly wand. At once he felt the magic traveling through him and leaving the tip of his wand and kept his mind engrossed with this and only this task. The metal needle slowly changed into an exact replica of his wand, except that instead of a flat tip, there was the match head.

"Outstanding, Mr. Potter! Take ten points to Hufflepuff this time. Very few students manage this transformation on the first day, and I can count the number of pupils on one hand who managed to transform it back. Excellent work."

Her eyes were full of pride and he had to resist once again calling her Minnie. It just flowed off the tongue, and he was starting to regret, very slightly, finding out his dad had ever called her that. He knew it was only a matter of time before he slipped and uttered that in front of others. Part of him just wanted to get it over with.

Minerva had told him to see what else he could do and turned around to give assistance to other individuals.

"Harry!" Hermione practically whined as she went over to him. Neville was giving him a puppy dog look as well.

"How did you do that? I am concentrating on the spell and I'm sure I am performing the wand movements perfectly, as demonstrated in the text and on the board. What am I missing?"

Harry would soon learn that once Hermione had set her mind to accomplish something, she wouldn't stop until she had achieved it satisfactorily. Which to her meant perfectly - but that was a minor detail.

"Hermione," he started, knowing that Neville was listening intently as well,

"The key to this is your mind as Professor McGonagall told us – but you have to have a clear picture in your mind of what you want it to transform into. You have to give the spell intent, a purpose if you will. Your magic gives the spell life and you have to ignite that spark with your will. If the magic doesn't have a clear form to take, the spell will never work properly."

By the end of the class, both Neville and Hermione had achieved different degrees of success with the spell and Minerva was quite pleased with the progress.

At the end of the lesson, Minnie also called upon Harry to remain and told him how proud she was of him before making sure that he was coping with the events of the previous day. Afterwards, she sent him on his way and Harry rejoined Hermione and Neville who were again waiting for him in the hallway.

The rest of the week passed in the same manner. He was correct with his initial assessment of Charms and DADA being among his favorite classes. Professor Flitwick was one of the more entertaining personalities he had ever encountered, and Harry had immensely enjoyed his first lecture.

They had started with the theory of what made a charm different from a transfiguration or a curse. Charms were characterized by infusing a small amount of your essence temporarily into something else to give it another quality that was determined by the incantation and the belief you had in it. Initially, Charms was seen as a favorite to most students because it was the easiest branch to start with; however, the more advanced the charms became, the more difficult it was to power them and few ever possessed the right qualities needed in becoming a Master of Charms. Some of the most sophisticated and detailed Magic was the higher-level Charms. Harry sincerely hoped that he would do his mum proud and was dedicated to trying as hard as he could.

He thought it would be weird having Remus as a teacher, but he was so easy-going and likeable that it never really became an issue. Remus was one of the most popular teachers because he had this way of teaching that made the learning process fun and not really feel like work. DADA combined elements of the other branches of magic and started with developing problem solving skills since the students needed to have a basic grasp of their other classes before they could start studying practical applications in earnest.

While he saw the point to Herbology and liked tending to a garden in general, he saw it mostly as an offshoot of potions and not distinct enough. Something with which Neville disagreed with him on. He enjoyed it, certainly, but it wasn't something that excited him as much as some of the other classes. In a way, he found the time that he spent in class relaxing as he just enjoyed getting his hands dirty. It was therapeutic to him.

He didn't really like History of Magic and neither did anyone else. It was dreadfully boring and that ghost just droned on in that monotonous voice that would put the entire class to sleep.

Astronomy was perplexing because it was so far behind what the muggles had done that most muggle-borns were left bewildered but had no trouble with the class. Wizards seemed to be more concerned with what the state of the planets and constellations meant for life on earth and how it would affect their lives. They really didn't care, or believe, that muggles had been to the moon. What would be the point? Harry, and the majority of the school, didn't really care for the subject and it was quite difficult being up that late.

* * *

And before he knew it, the weekend arrived. Over the course of the first week, his budding friendship with Neville and Hermione had continued to grow and they were fast becoming inseparable.

With the weekend's arrival, however, also brought Harry the time that he needed to catch up with Cedric.

During the week he had been debating what to share with Cedric. He knew that Cedric would have questions about how Harry had known that Pettigrew was in the castle, but Harry didn't know how honest he could be with the other boy. It wasn't like he wanted everyone to know about his map. Though, Cedric had been more privy to certain elements of the story and Harry thought it likely that he would soon put the dots together with the piece of parchment that he had showed Remus that first night in the castle.

Ultimately, Harry had decided to follow his heart and trust in the connection he had felt when their hands had touched, much the same way he had been directed to Kaa and Hedwig. He didn't even have to think about adding them into his life and had accepted it because it just felt right.

After that was decided, Harry just had to wait to catch Cedric alone. The map was put to good use as Harry waited until the commotion in the common room had died down before going and visiting Cedric. He decided that he would bring Cedric to his room - he didn't want everyone to know that he had the map or overhear their conversation.

Cedric was sitting in the corner of the room reading one his class books when Harry suddenly appeared next to him, startling him slightly.

"Hey Cedric," Harry spoke nonchalantly while removing his cloak as if appearing out of nowhere.

"Harry!" Was all Cedric could get out while grasping his chest.

"Oh, sorry – I can be really quiet when I want to be." He probably should have not risked the cloak but a part of him just couldn't resist seeing if he could pull it off.

"Want to go to my room?"

"Okay, let me just get my stuff," He replied, putting his book in his bag and slinging it over his shoulder.

They walked to Harry's room and he closed the door behind both him and Cedric, slightly nervous about how this little chat would go. He could only hope he was right to put his faith in him.

"So, I bet you are probably wondering how I knew Peter Pettigrew was here; I just ask that you keep this between us?"

He looked to Cedric hopefully, "am I wrong to trust you? I just _feel_ that I can."

Cedric looked down at the ground. He couldn't explain it but he had been captivated by Harry Potter since he first had laid eyes on him at the feast; there was just something about him that drew him in.

And then there had been that handshake! What was that? He had felt this electric spark spread all throughout his body, and this connection to another person he had never felt before. It was like rediscovering something you had thought you had lost but at the same time was something that you never knew that you had ever possessed; it was familiar but also entirely new. He may not have known what this was that was going on between them and why he felt so comfortable with someone he had just met; however, he wasn't going to run away. Harry could trust him and he, in turn would trust Harry.

"I have been wondering about Pettigrew, Harry… I don't know why you want to but you can trust me. Though, I don't want to pry into your personal life."

Cedric had moved closer to Harry though there was enough distance to maintain a healthy personal space and was soon towering slightly over the younger wizard.

Harry had followed his approach and looked up into his gray eyes.

"You were there for me that day and didn't ask too many questions… and I really appreciated that. I don't know… I just feel comfortable around you and feel like I owe it to you to be honest."

"You don't owe me anything Harry." Cedric hesitated slightly, aware of just how awkward that sounded. It was like something greater than himself was compelling him to act.

"I just… I can't explain it, but I feel the need to protect you, if that makes any sense. Ever since we shook hands and I felt this shock run through me, I…"

Harry cut in at that.

"You felt that too?! It was like this feeling that was slightly overwhelming all of a sudden… but I felt safe, comforted. Is that weird?"

"I think this whole thing is weird, Harry. To be honest, I have no idea what is going on and it scares me a little. But I am not afraid of it; it's more unsettling because of the intensity. If anything, I feel this need to be like a big brother to you."

Harry was momentarily dejected on the inside. He didn't like hearing the words that Cedric felt brotherly towards him, but he was a _little_ young for these kinds of feelings. He knew it had something to do with whatever it was that had passed between them, but was more than happy that Cedric considered him in a positive way at all.

Harry didn't know what to say so instead he retrieved the Marauder's Map and activated it and then proceeded to completely blow Cedric's mind with what the contents of the map showed.

"My dad made this with his friends when he was back in Hogwarts. It never lies and even shows some secret passages that we should check out sometime."

Harry paused and waited for Cedric to process the map and what it could do.

"This is how I knew. I saw Peter's name in Gryffindor tower and I went to Remus. Aside from being by guardian, he was good friends with my dad and helped make the map with him."

"Wow, Harry, I … I don't know what to say. This map is incredible on one hand, but on the other, to find out that way…"

He looked at Harry concernedly.

"My parents had left me letters detailing some of their final events, they told me that Peter was the Secret Keeper and I had shared that with Remus. But Sirius would still have been guilty of the other murders so the information really wouldn't have done anything. But after seeing Pettigrew's name… I knew that there was something off about everything. If he was alive, there was a chance that we didn't know everything about that day in the street."

Cedric had such emotion and concern in his eyes when he looked at Harry that his knees felt week because of the intensity. And he had only known Cedric for a week; it was frightening.

"It's okay, Cedric… I made peace with what happened that night." Harry spoke with a quiet conviction.

Cedric reached out and patted Harry's shoulder in solidarity and the same spark occurred, albeit less intense. Both of them felt it and locked eyes with each other.

At this point, Kaa just had to say something. He had been listening to their conversation and trying to discern as much as he could about this other boy that Harry was putting so much faith in, but that spark had been the last straw and he needed to know more.

' _Harry, let me look into his eyes. I am fairly certain with my conclusion that he is trustworthy and would never betray you, but I need to look into his eyes to confirm it_. _I realize this will risk your ability but feel it prudent if you continue to reveal things to him, as I know you want to.'_

 _'Are you sure, Kaa? … I suppose you are right… Do you think this is weird? Am I wrong to trust him… I need your input.'_

 _'This is why I want to look in his eyes… I can't say this is weird because the feeling is very similar to the one I experienced with you before we bonded. I just felt something I couldn't explain and just went with it.'_

Harry considered it for a moment and turned his attention back to Cedric.

"Cedric, I don't want you to freak out but I want to show you someone who is very dear and important to me… He is a snake… and he is bonded to me and won't hurt you. His name is Kaa and he just wants to look into your eyes."

Harry was trying to lessen the shock by speaking slowly and carefully.

Cedric looked at him questioningly while bringing one hand to rest on his hips while holding his chin contemplatively processing what Harry had just said. His grey eyes were looking over Harry, trying to think about where a snake could be hiding on him or somewhere else in the room.

"A snake… how do you know it wants to look into my eyes?"

Cedric wasn't that alarmed and the only emotion that Harry could detect was an honest curiosity.

"I'm a Parselmouth."

Cedric shook his head and snorted. He shouldn't have been surprised. This was Harry Potter and he had just been shown a map that could indicate where everyone was that was in the castle. Why wouldn't Harry have other abilities or fantastic possessions!

"All right," he said, allowing himself a moment to process all of this.

Harry nodded and Cedric removed his hands from his thinking pose and was led to sit on Harry's bed. They were sitting cross-legged on the bed, facing each other.

Kaa slithered out from Harry's left sleeve and coiled in the space between them on the bed.

Cedric's eyebrows rose slightly but he didn't seem to be too afraid; if anything his curiosity was building.

" _He is very handsome, Harry… Can I have his permission to coil around his wrist and then if he would hold me up to his face – I promise not to hurt him_."

Harry relayed the message to Cedric and said that when they were not attached they had to speak out loud, but when they were attached they could communicate telepathically. He briefly explained about their bond, and again, asked Cedric to keep this between them.

"Of course," Cedric nodded.

Cautiously, Cedric laid his right arm next to the snake, who slowly – so as not to alarm him – coiled around his wrist. Cedric felt a very faint sensation that reminded him of Harry's touch and lingered in place for a moment before gently raising his wrist to eye level to allow Kaa to gaze into his eyes. It was a very weird and peculiar image.

They stared at each other for quite some time. Kaa was almost as content on Cedric's arm as he was on Harry's – and he could only sense honesty and a building curiosity behind Cedric's gray orbs. He was searching for anything that would indicate him as a threat to his bonded but he couldn't detect anything nefarious. The more he was in contact with the other boy the more he wanted to trust him. He was beginning to see why Harry wanted to tell him everything and was even starting to agree.

Cedric had something that was very genuine and sincere about him that just made you feel good on the inside. Kaa could only hope it would serve Harry well in the future; he would need all the help he could get. Harry needed someone that was his age that he could trust.

Eventually, Kaa had asked Harry to tell Cedric that he wanted to be put down and slithered over to Harry to mentally share everything with him. Cedric was watching the silent exchange and was relieved when a smile appeared on Harry's lips and his eyes flickered to meet Cedric's. He relayed that Kaa had found him trustworthy and, again, Cedric said he would not share anything that Harry didn't want him too.

Satisfied with Kaa's assurances about making Cedric aware about some of Harry's secrets, the two young wizards spread out the map between them and spent the rest of the evening deciding on secret passages they would check out or places of the castle that Cedric hadn't known existed. They occasionally commented on people that they saw out and about and Cedric would add a detail or two about the people he knew.

They both blushed as they discovered the clandestine activities of some of Hogwarts older couples.

It was a very tired but happy Cedric that had left Harry's room later that night to head to his own. He hadn't been bothered by anything that Harry had revealed and was certainly looking forward to exploring the castle with him.

He may have been initially startled by finding out that the Boy Who Lived was a Parselmouth but it was evident after watching the interaction between Kaa and Harry that both were very loyal to the other. It was clear that they were a team and, deep down, Cedric was slightly jealous that he would never be able to have that level of closeness and complete understanding with someone. But he was happy for Harry, and if anyone deserved to be able to have a companion like that - it was Harry. Cedric could only hope that someday he would get a fraction of the intimacy that Harry had found.

 **Let me know what you think: Good or Bad!**


	15. Mr Abernathy

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, I think I should make some things clear about how this story will progress based on comments that I received after the first time that I posted.

I do realize that Harry is 11 but I am basing him off me when I was that age. I gather that it may be different than what others felt or did but that is how it was for me. It's easier for me to write this Harry if I were going through all of that because that is what I know the best.

Also, I'm not having Harry/Cedric get together this early so there will be time for a buildup and they are nowhere close to falling in love. I just wanted something positive in Harry's life since he was dealing with everything else. They will be friends first and develop a closeness AND they will certainly have issues. I think it fits so far with this Harry and though he may be taking a risk with Cedric, I think it is justified. I would act this way in a lot of these situations, but I know that everyone does things differently. I want to assure you though that I am not trying to add things haphazardly. I do have a goal I am working towards. I know that Cedric is almost three years older than Harry in the book, but I'll be taking some liberties with his age. Namely, his birthday will be in August and he is slightly less than 2 years older than Harry.

Speaking of Harry, I realize that a lot of things are happening quite quickly. But to be honest, if I had that map I would treat it like I do fanfiction: I would stare at that thing for an unhealthy amount of time. Especially if Harry thinks about where else he could have been sorted, he would have noticed Pettigrew in Gryffindor. What I don't find realistic is how Fred and George had that map with Ron/Pettigrew in the castle for over 2 years and didn't think it strange that Ron was sleeping with Peter for 2 years.

I do understand that it may seem like a lot is happening and I have my reasons for that. I would not presume to be better than JK and I want to tell a different story with different elements. I have read some great takes on the various years and I am going in a different direction but really think the events so far would happen if Harry got questions to specific answers.

* * *

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything and while I may be confused with some of her choices, just as people are confused with mine, JK really gave us one of the best gifts. She crafted this entire world and populated it with characters that we can all relate to. I seriously wish I could have gone to Hogwarts…**

Harry woke the next day feeling somewhat refreshed for the first time in a while. Sure the previous few days had been difficult, but the week had ended on such a positive note – he had felt like a normal kid for once getting to hang out and just joke around with a friend. Well, as normal as someone who possessed a kickass magical map that showed where everyone in the castle was could be.

Hopefully, this whole Pettigrew/Sirius fiasco would be over with later today. Though Harry didn't want to get too fixated on the trial and just hoped that there wouldn't be any hiccups with clearing his name. So Harry pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and focused on how Sirius' recovery was going to go.

Obviously he wasn't expecting there to be miracles, but it was encouraging to know that the man had survived ten years in that horrid place better than anyone could have expected. It was likely that Remus would continue to be there for him and he was glad that Sirius wouldn't have to go through this alone, even if he still had some residual guilt over having thought the worst of him before he knew better.

Presumably, most of the recovery would happen at Grimmauld Place once he was cleared from St. Mungos, but who knew how long that would actually take. And even if he went home, he would still be alone and that wouldn't exactly be healthy either. Maybe he would be better off at St. Mongos for the time being until he got his life back together. But he wasn't really the one to decide that and he was getting ahead of himself just thinking about it; capable adults were handling this situation. They wouldn't let the man suffer anymore. Hopefully

Harry was also being a little selfish for wanting Sirius to recover besides him being able to assume his Godfather duties - which he really did want. In truth, he would like the pressure of being the acting Black Heir removed from his shoulders by Sirius being the new Lord. Now, he was aware that he would still be the heir to House Black and House Potter and future lord of both, but he already had too much to deal with and he would snap if things continued on the way they had been. One less responsibility was fine by him. But that was only a small part; mostly he was just looking forward to Sirius recovering because then he would have one more link to his parents and the life he could have had.

Then him and Remus would be able to take care of him, because whatever happened with Sirius, he would always want Remus to be there. In a short amount of time Remus had become almost like a father to him and Harry would take all the family he could get.

The more he thought about it, the more evident it became that he was assembling a very diverse group of individuals around him. Despite everything else that had been going or was currently going on, he was very thankful for having them in his life.

In a little over a month he had gone from having almost no one to having several people and animals that were by his side and sticking with him through all of these unexpected surprises and crises. He couldn't quite put into words just how much it meant to him that he didn't have to go through any of this alone. In spite of the craziness of Voldemort and his stupid Horcruxes and all of the political nonsense and Peter Pettigrew, there had been an equal number of positive events that had helped to counteract the negative effects.

He hoped that there was nothing else problematic or excessively ridiculous looming on the horizon, though he didn't see what else could be brought up unexpectedly. However, he didn't want to temp the fates by questioning it out loud. He knew how those things worked.

He lingered in bed for a few minutes longer than he should have but couldn't help reveling in knowing that multiple people cared about him. It was about time that he had this many things to be appreciative about and he wasn't going to take it for granted that he had this many supportive resources.

Speaking of supportive individuals, Kaa took this opportunity to move from his perch over Harry's bed and slithered down to rest on his bare skin, allowing them to communicate silently. Sometimes he just knew when Harry was taking the time to process things and adjust to his life at Hogwarts, but other times he was curious and wanted to know exactly what his bonded companion was thinking.

As it was he thought Harry was ignoring issues, like the prophecy, that would come back to bite him but understood the situation enough to know Harry was using 'thinking about other things' as a coping mechanism to just survive from one moment to the next.

The snake had decided that he could only be there for Harry when he finally broke down and started the process of rebuilding again. Kaa didn't want to think about what another shock would do to his companion and tried to think about other, less stressful things when they were telepathically linked.

However, just as he wrapped himself around Harry's wrist, the Boy Who Lived dragged himself out of bed and started to gather his bathroom supplies.

* * *

Later that day, Harry was enjoying his Saturday supper with the rest of the first year Hufflepuffs. Neville had joined Harry and Hermione in a study session that day and they had gotten all of their weekend homework out of the way. Hermione had also read all of the course books before coming to Hogwarts and was itching to spend as much time in the library until she knew all of those books as well. She didn't like being handicapped by being a muggle-born and wanted to learn everything she could. Harry felt the same but realized that he would have to pace himself, and he had more important things to worry about.

There was also the realization that he would need to have fun once and a while and do things that served only his interests or else he would lose it. It was why Cedric and him had arranged to begin their exploration of the castle together on Sunday. Cedric had spent part of the day doing his homework and the rest practicing at the Quidditch pitch in the hopes of making the house team.

Remus had been gone the entire day and still wasn't present at dinnertime, and neither was Dumbledore. The evening mail came – which Harry still wasn't used to seeing that many owls flying overhead - and Harry received a note from Hedwig, which Harry thought was rather odd since he hadn't sent her anywhere. He had visited her a few times and had brought some treats for her but so far he had no one for her to deliver anything to. He wasn't planning on asking Sharptooth for anything about his accounts until the end of the month.

 _Harry,_

 _Please come to my office after dinner._

 _I am overly fond of 'lemon drops,' should you enquire at the entrance._

 _Albus Dumbledore_

' _Well that explained why Hedwig was used_ ,' Harry thought to himself as he folded up the small piece of parchment and fed a piece of his chicken to the snowy bird before she took flight again.

He wondered how the headmaster had gotten to her and then realized that this was Dumbledore and that the man could probably do anything. Though, he had probably just gone to her and asked her to deliver the letter for him.

' _I guess that means the trial went well or at the very least it is over_ ,' Harry thought, unintentionally in parseltongue. He found that when Kaa was attached to him, all of his thoughts just naturally were formed in that language. Kaa obviously did the same thing since it was the only language that he spoke.

Harry was getting used to the random thoughts from his companion that would suddenly appear in his head. Kaa had quite the flair for sarcastic comments and it was getting easier to keep his chuckles to himself.

Harry explained to the others that he would meet them back in the common room later. There was an unspoken understanding about what it was about considering the trial had been today. They had done their best to not talk about it – something that Harry had been eternally grateful for.

When dinner ended, Harry casually made his way towards where he remembered the Headmaster's office to be. In what seemed like a matter of seconds, he was soon standing before the ancient-looking griffin that guarded the entrance.

After finding that it wouldn't give him entry, he thought back to the letter. Was he supposed to say the muggle candy out loud? Well, other common rooms had passwords, and Hermione had told them about answering riddles to get into the Ravenclaw dorms. He tried to think back to the first time he was here when they had dealt with the Horcrux, but admittedly, he hadn't really paid attention at that time. He supposed that the Headmaster didn't need to say anything and that it just opened for him and the password was meant for others.

"Lemon drops?" Harry said hesitantly.

Immediately, the griffin rose and then turned clockwise to reveal a rising circular staircase. Harry ascended the newly revealed steps and knocked on the intricate and ornate door he found at the end.

"Come in."

Harry opened the door cautiously and peeked inside. Remus was standing with another man that he was sure wasn't Sirius. He took a moment to think.

' _Perhaps this was the mind healer that they had talked earlier_ ,' he reasoned.

Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk with his hands folded, and sparkling, sky blue eyes were looking at him through his half-moon spectacles. Of course, Dumbledore completed his ensemble with lavender robes speckled with gold stars. Seemed appropriate.

"You wanted to see me, Headmaster?" Harry asked the question but his eyes were focused on Remus and the middle-aged man that he was standing next to.

"I wanted to let you hear the good news first, Harry," Dumbledore said.

He motioned for Harry to sit but he had gone straight to Remus and looked up into his eyes questioningly. It was obvious that the trial had gone well - what else would count as good news? Still, he needed to hear it out loud and preferred that it came from Remus, no disrespect towards the Headmaster.

Remus nodded and smiled at his charge.

"Pettigrew was found guilty and Sirius was officially cleared of all charges. In addition to a formal apology that will be presented tomorrow in the Daily Prophet, and one being made in person by the Minister at this very moment, Sirius will be awarded ten thousand galleons for every year that he was imprisoned. They are also paying his tab for St. Mungos while he is recuperating."

Well that was certainly good news. And Sirius would have some money to start over for himself; Harry hadn't spent all of the gold that was in Sirius' account and he hoped he would get a chance to explain his reasoning to Sirius about why he had spend some of the money on upkeep. He could always pay him back, he told himself.

He nodded at Remus to continue; since it was obvious that there was more to come.

Remus then introduced Harry and his companion to each other.

"Harry, this is the mind healer I was telling you about. His name is William Abernathy and he works for St. Mungos."

He turned to William, "This is Harry Potter."

"How do you do, sir?" Harry extended his right hand since Kaa was on the left.

"Pleasure, Mr. Potter. Remus has told me a few things about you. Nothing too serious, mind you; just bits and pieces to help me get a better picture of the type of person you are."

Harry's first impression of the man was a positive one. He had salt and pepper hair that was short on the sides but styled on top and he was wearing a tweed robe that gave him the distinct impression of being related to Sherlock Holmes. He just needed a pipe and a bowler hat and he would be all set. But besides that, he had kind eyes and a very caring air about him, which made sense given his profession.

"Now, Harry," Remus directed his attention back onto himself. "I brought Healer Abernathy here tonight so that the two of you could meet. I was at St. Mungos visiting Sirius after the trial and ran into him. Naturally, we began talking and one thing led to another and here we all are."

Remus went on to explain that Mr. Abernathy could come on the weekends and they could have a private session, and if Harry wasn't comfortable or that if it wasn't working they could find someone else. He made it clear that he wanted Harry to be comfortable and William had emphasized this point as well. There would be no hard feelings if Harry were uncomfortable in any way by working with him.

"How would the privacy thing work?" Harry had then asked, feeling optimistic that liking this healer wouldn't be a problem.

"I would take something similar to an Unbreakable Vow, Harry. The consequences wouldn't be death but not that much better. We would walk through the details of the specifics of the oath before we began because there are times I may need to reveal something in an emergency situation."

"That seems appropriate." Harry paused. That seemed very reasonable, actually, and it was much better than the patient confidentiality that muggles had, but then again, they didn't have magic to enforce it.

"Is there a time next weekend that would work for you?" Harry enquired. He was surprisingly adjusting to the idea of therapy much better now after meeting the person and being able to get a feeling for the type of person that he was.

Before Mr. Abernathy left it was decided that he would stop over Saturday mornings at ten. They would be able to meet right after breakfast and then Harry could join Hermione and Neville in the library. It would fit perfectly with his new schedule.

They shook hands, less awkwardly this time, and Remus led him out of the castle, promising Harry that he would come right back.

Harry spent the time waiting for Remus by speaking with the Headmaster about inconsequential things regarding his first week and how he was adjusting to classes. Harry had spent a great deal of time admiring the Phoenix and hearing all about its magical properties.

Remus had returned to Harry scratching the neck of the regal creature. Soon they said goodnight to Dumbledore and Remus led Harry back to Hufflepuff, making a quick detour in the Kitchens to get some hot cocoa.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think!**

 **Short but I edited large parts out because they didn't fit anymore.**

 **Next update will be longer.**


	16. Exploring Hogwarts

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, I am really trying to focus on character development in this chapter and should be able to start moving the story forward in time more quickly. Future chapters will not just encompass a day or two but will begin spanning weeks or months in some cases. Otherwise, it would take a very long time getting to the end, and while I want to do this story justice and not rush – that just seems excessive! I am currently estimating at least 450k for a total word length.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything and I really wish Hogwarts was real. Could you just imagine?! Thank you JK for giving us this gift.**

* * *

Harry had slept soundly after ending the previous day over a delicious cup of hot cocoa with his guardian. It had given them an opportunity to have a rare family moment at Hogwarts away from others and made them feel like they were back at Grimmauld Place. It also provided Remus an opening to tell Harry just how he expected the outcome of Sirius' trial to play out over the coming days.

Remus thought that a write up on Sunday in the Daily Prophet by Rita Skeeter was a given; however, he had been pleasantly surprised that she hadn't brought Harry into the story more. The woman seemed quite happy to focus instead on the apparent ineptitude of the Ministry and its bureaucratic inefficiencies. Remus was downright relieved that her vitriolic pen, which had cut many prominent figures down to size, was aimed at those officials who might have put innocent people away rather than focusing on a boy who was only eleven.

After mentioning this to Harry, both had agreed that perhaps the story had been so shocking and juicy on its own that Rita hadn't needed to add any of her usual embellishments.

For Rita was the type of person that was interested as much in the truth as she was in making a name for herself, which helped explain her penchant for dramatics to sell a story that was important but read dry. She was an expert in story telling and could turn paint drying into an action-packed adventure. It was one of the reasons why the Minister and Director Bones had gone to her first: they had wanted to do as much damage control as possible by being upfront and cooperative with what they had found to try and limit the potential fallout of the incident. The last thing they wanted was bad press and an even further drop in public support.

But their plan seemed to be working as Miss Skeeter had devoted considerable time and attention during the past week to lambasting the judicial process of previous administrations in a series of scathing articles. Primarily, she had focused on events that had occurred during the end of the last war and very little was mentioned about flaws within the current government and, if discussed, were not aimed at specific people.

However, Harry hadn't been the only one whose family history had been dug up and displayed for all to see. Several other Hogwarts students had been unintentionally exposed to the spotlight because of the their family's involvement with a myriad of past issues that were touched upon and explored. It was quite astonishing the rate in which these articles were published and the depth of their content. They were well researched and astonishingly accurate based on information that Remus was also privy to. He suspected that she had known about these events for some time and was just waiting for the perfect moment to release the information.

For example, the killings of Amelia's brother, Edmund, and his wife had gone unsolved and had produced another orphan in Susan Bones. Edmund had been considered a possible replacement for Minister of Magic as he was exceedingly popular with the lighter houses. His death and that of his wife was something that was hardly touched upon at the time since it had occurred just days before He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's downfall. Which fit in perfectly with Rita's current unearthing of evidence that firmly linked the death of Susan's parents to Death Eater activity – even if it was the assumption for a majority of the deaths that happened at the time.

Besides Susan, Neville also found himself at the forefront another day because of an expose on his parents' torture that at the time had been quietly dealt with behind closed doors because one of the perpetrators had been the son of a high-level Ministry employee. Even though justice had been served, hardly anyone had known what had happened to the Longbottoms; after a while, their memory was all but forgotten as the country remembered what it felt like to live without fear.

However, and unbeknownst to most, the event had affected Crouch Sr., who was also in line for the position of the Minister but internal powers had forced him to quietly transition from head of the DMLE to working in the Department of International Magical Cooperation.

Other students were not so lucky with the understanding of their peers with the publishing of these events. For instance, Draco Malfoy had been the subject of many out-of-sight whispers regarding the alleged bribes that his father had undertaken to keep him out of jail for being the suspected right-hand man of the Dark Lord. Rita held nothing back as she went after Lucius at the risk of her own safety.

Draco, who had come to Hogwarts expecting to rule Slytherin, was now forced to be mindful of his actions in front of the other houses. He didn't have that much to worry about within Slytherin as his name alone commanded him a certain place within their house's hierarchy, and in some circles just strengthened it.

The other Hufflepuffs had done a tremendous job of rallying around Neville and Susan to shield them from the Hogwarts rumor mill. Though, this was an event that didn't generate much gossip besides the wayward looks of sympathy from the other students. Family tragedies were seen as private to the majority of the student populace and they rightfully and respectfully provided space and understanding.

Harry had been sorry to see some of his new friends exposed to the unwanted fame and notoriety and had been at the forefront providing his support. He knew all too well how this could affect someone and wanted to help mitigate some of the bad side effects. The first-year Hufflepuffs were becoming extremely close as a result of some of its members having such personal horrors exposed from the past and had banded together in a textbook display of loyalty.

Meanwhile, Hermione was new to all of this and couldn't believe that a national, no international, publication had focused on some of her friends and exposed private and extremely personal details about their family. She had hugged Neville and Susan fiercely and told them how sorry she was for all of this. It was very touching in witnessing Hermione display such unabashed human emotions after having started to gain a very bookish reputation during the first week of classes. It helped show her inner compassion and had endeared many Puffs to her.

Despite the negatives that had occurred, there had also been positive things that had come out of it and the developing friendships had made it easier for Harry to deal with some of his own issues better. He saw that everyone had things to deal with even though there were considerable differences between what it was that they each had to deal with. It reminded him that everyone's issues were valid and real to the individuals that were dealing with them and didn't make him feel like it was just him that was going through complicated and difficult times.

So after a restful sleep, Harry had awoken bright and early that Sunday morning and excitedly made his was to the Great Hall to get an early breakfast in before he started exploring the castle in earnest with Cedric.

At Hogwarts, meal times were very flexible on the weekends and food was served continuously throughout the morning and early afternoon to accommodate the students that wanted to be up early or the ones that slept in. Dinner was the only meal where it was expected that everyone sat down at the same time to eat. It was a nice option for those with different weekend schedules and gave everyone plenty of flexibility.

Another reason that Harry wanted to get an early start on the day was that he had no intention of being present when the Daily Prophet was delivered. This was the scandal of the year and it was getting a lot of publicity. Harry would rather not be around when others started to read about very personal matters relating to him.

Very few people were around when Harry entered and he went over to the nearly empty Hufflepuff table. Normally, the only people up this early on weekends were students that played quidditch. Since the house teams hadn't been filled yet, the students that were present hoped to make their way to the quidditch pitch after breakfast and get some training in before tryouts. The vast majority of students treated Sunday as a day for sleeping in and then homework; they tended to combine breakfast and lunch together before spending the afternoon working on their homework or preparing for the week ahead if they had already finished.

Even those that had played on their respective house teams from last year were mostly present this morning, as it was not automatically guaranteed that one's spot on the team was secured. These individuals were looking to keep up with their training and maintain their house positions. There was also the added benefit of seeing if anyone was present that would pose a challenge in securing the same position for another year. The only individuals that were guaranteed a place on the team were the captains, and their respective head of house chose them at the end of the previous year.

Cedric had wanted to play seeker since before he had first come to Hogwarts. He may have been a bit taller than one would expect for someone going out for the position, but his agility and quickness more than made up for his slightly greater height. Cedric had gotten in a solid practice yesterday and had been training during some of his free periods during the week and felt confident in his ability to challenge for the open position of seeker. The previous Hufflepuff seeker had since graduated and their team was in a building phase.

Normally, Cedric liked to sleep in on Sundays - but today there was something that had lured him out of bed.

When he had not been training for quidditch, doing his homework, or hanging out with his friends, he had been perusing the Marauder's Map with Harry. Besides keeping tabs on the populace of the school, they had been noting all of the interesting places within the castle that no one had seemed to frequent – and other places that couples seemed overly fond of to get a spot of privacy… those spots were going to be avoided for the time being – it would be awkward to stumble upon his classmates _in flagrante delicto_.

During the week they had made plans to perform a complete and thorough investigation of the castle on Sunday mornings until they were finished. The castle would be ripe for exploration then; most students preferred to sleep in and, thus, they would not arouse as much suspicion at that time. Cedric still couldn't get over the veritable goldmine that Harry possessed and couldn't wait to see what they would uncover.

The third-year Hufflepuff entered the Great Hall and made his way over to where Harry was sitting and helped himself to a generous size portion of bangers and eggs with some toast and fried tomatoes. He liked to indulge a little on the weekends and he needed to keep up his energy levels if he was going to succeed with his quidditch endeavor.

Harry was just about finished with his own meal when Cedric had joined him and he patiently waited for the other boy to finish his breakfast while laying out their game plan. They had previously discussed this at length and Harry was merely summing up what they had come up with. Even though they were desperate to check out some of the more obvious secret passages that were indicated leaving the castle grounds, they had decided that a systematic approach was best. This way they would cover every inch of the castle and perhaps stumble upon a room or passageway that was left forgotten and not indicated on the map.

Remus had mentioned in passing that he didn't think the Marauders had discovered everything in the castle, and the Sorting Hat had practically confirmed it.

They both appreciated having more or less a blueprint of the castle in which they could see if all of the space on the map was accounted for and vice versa. This was very appealing to Harry because in the back of his mind he was curious where this Chamber of Secrets was located and figured this would be a great deductive approach to find it.

Now Harry hadn't informed Cedric, or anyone else, about what the Sorting Hat had told him about exploring the castle for its lost secrets or Slytherin's hideaway. He would deal with the implications of Cedric finding out about the Chamber of Secrets if and when they found it.

But he did suggest to Cedric that it was possible that this map only showed places that it was aware of and had been to and, thus, provided the older boy with an incentive to go exploring with him. Not that he really needed it when there were secret passageways in and out of the castle or the fact that Cedric was thoroughly enjoying spending time with the younger boy. They had had fun contemplating where some of the passageways led to and had come up with a fair amount of plausible hypotheses and some whimsical ones as well – Harry kept telling himself that with magic anything was possible. He wouldn't rule anything out until he was sure, and even then he didn't think he would be comfortable until he had a better understanding of Magic's limits.

Harry also hadn't shared the wonders of the invisibility cloak with Cedric just yet. There were some things that Harry had wanted to keep private for the time being. He didn't mind sharing the map, as it was something that could be easily shared and enjoyed with someone else. The cloak was private though, and a deeply personal connection to his family. Perhaps in time he would let Cedric in on these things, depending on how their friendship developed or extenuating circumstances that could happen while exploring the castle.

For all Harry knew they could stumble upon the girls lavatory and the cloak would certainly come in handy if that ever happened. It was always wise to keep some things a secret but there were times when letting them out were necessary and that was definitely one of them.

Cedric finished his breakfast of champions and the two left the great hall while it was still sparsely populated and headed to the top of the Astronomy Tower. They had decided on a top-down approach of various parts of the castle because of the many turrets that existed throughout. In this way, they wouldn't do all of the top floors or any floors all in one go, but would fully explore sections of the castle before moving onto others. It was hoped that this would provide variety and would be easier to keep track of where they had been and allow them to become more familiar with the nuances present in distinct sections. It was hoped that the more of an expert they became in certain parts, the easier it would be for them to tell if something was out of place – perhaps suggesting that something was hidden there.

When they reached the top of the highest tower they finally began their search for Hogwarts' secrets. They had chatted about this and that while being on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary as they moved from where they used their telescopes late at night to where they had lectures every once and a while.

Despite the size and age of the castle, it appeared that the castle had been constructed all in one go and the highest turret seemed just as wizened and weathered as the ground floor: stones, décor, and the very feeling that one got was exactly the same up here. It must have been a sight to see it being constructed back in the day. From everything Harry knew about the founders, he would have paid good money to see them all casting and using magic as they erected Hogwarts.

They were currently exploring a very dusty and underutilized room – in which Harry had hoped to find a giant chute that would take one all the way down to the first floor – when the topic of conversation turned to the trial and if Harry had heard anything.

It was because it was Cedric and that he had been there since the beginning so to speak that Harry answered him, as he could see that he was truly curious and wanted to make sure that he was dealing with everything.

"It went as expected" Harry answered truthfully.

"Pettigrew will be put away for life. Sirius had requested that the Dementor's Kiss – do you know what that is?" He asked Cedric since there wasn't a point in continuing the conversation if he didn't understand that tidbit of information.

Cedric nodded solemnly and looked away at the wall when he answered.

"Most wizarding children are told stories about the dementors as something to fear. Parents are fond of using them as a means to install good behavior in their children – at least that is what my father thinks and abides by. It's crazy to think about though – existing without your soul. It gives me shivers all the way down my spine to think about it. I imagine that is why parents use it to try and keep their children in line; it certainly worked for me!"

Cedric turned to look at Harry and there was genuine fear in his eyes as Cedric was thinking about something so precious being taken from him in that manner. There was silence for a few minutes before Cedric spoke up again.

"What were you going to say about Sirius requesting the Dementor's Kiss, Harry?"

Harry took a deep breath.

"He requested that it was taken off of the table. I guess he had told Remus that he had wanted Pettigrew to remember the treason that had taken the people that he had considered family away from him. He thought the Dementor's Kiss was an easy way out because he wouldn't have remembered the pain that he caused."

Harry shook his head and shrugged.

"I don't know how I feel about the situation – I'm glad that I am not the one to decide this – but I can at least understand where he is coming from. You know what I mean?"

Cedric nodded solemnly.

They moved from the dusty room and began exploring the stairs that led to the floor below. There were a few unused classrooms that were currently being used as storage for everyone's telescopes and they weren't that hopeful to discover anything of note in here.

Harry continued their conversation.

"Remus says that Sirius is doing better than anyone thought he would, but it will likely take a year before he is fully back to normal – if he ever gets there that is. I don't see how anyone could come back and not be changed after living in those conditions for ten years. Just thinking about it is hard for me to process, I can't imagine what it was like for him to actually live through it."

They moved on to the floor below where Professor Aurora Sinistra's living quarters were that took up a good percentage of the area. The width of the tower was now getting larger and the space inside a bit roomier as they descended from the top. There was an unused classroom that yielded nothing in regards to secrets besides offering some nice views. But if anyone came here to have a view they would just ascend two more stories and get a fantastic three hundred and sixty degree view of Hogwarts in all of its glory.

"Has it been arranged when you are going to meet each other? Are you nervous about that? Will Remus continue being your guardian in the meantime?"

Cedric asked questions just like Harry did.

"It was decided that we would meet when we both had had more time to process everything and Sirius would be able to have ore time adjusting to being out of Azkaban."

Harry shrugged.

"I guess I am nervous because he was such great friends with my parents, and I do hope that he likes me. But Remus has been great so far, and yes he will still be my guardian no matter what happens. Perhaps Sirius and him could share custody of me in the future. Remus has been telling me all sorts of anecdotes about him and also telling Sirius all of these things about me. And he has told me not to worry about anything and expects our meeting to go smoothly. I trust Remus, and so it helps me to not worry or be as nervous as I could be…"

Harry took a moment to think through what he had just said.

"Does that make sense?"

"I think it makes sense Harry – you don't want to rush this process. I also agree with you that being in Azkaban must change someone – how could it not?" He stressed.

They chatted a bit more about the situation as they descended to their final floor of the day. The Astronomy Tower was quite tall and had fifteen stories, which was far greater than the seven stories that made up the main castle.

Nothing of note had been discovered on that floor either and Harry figured that it would take them the rest of the year to fully explore the castle at the rate they were going. They had barely made a dent in any of the possible locations where hidden things could be and he wasn't even adding the time it would take to properly explore new things once they had found them.

Cedric had then explained to Harry in great detail everything he knew about quidditch in an effort to move onto lighter topics. Next, Cedric filled Harry in on some of his family history and what his father did in the Ministry. Cedric wisely avoided asking about Harry's home situation and how that made him feel and would wait until the other boy was ready to talk about things. He couldn't imagine growing up without parents and noted that there seemed to be quite a few Hufflepuffs that were in that boat this year.

It was getting to be lunchtime and they had managed to thoroughly cover the top four floors of the Astronomy Tower. So far they had discovered nothing out the ordinary that they could detect and every square foot seemed accounted for on the map and in relation to their physical surroundings.

They would have to think of a way to test for a hidden expansion charm, even though Cedric had said that it was doubtful that one would have lasted this long. Cedric's favorite subject was charms and he was really good at them and one of the first things that they learned was that Charms were not permanent; however, some could last longer than others if they were created by an exceptionally powerful spell, which had more magic put into in than the average witch or wizard could generally muster.

Kaa had even tried to 'feel' his way around but it was hard to uncover things with all of the innate magic of the castle that saturated the air in a heavy coat. He was doing his best to tease out the subtle nuances and was trying to rely on his gut feeling should anything hint at being out of place.

The trio was hardly dejected because they had failed to turn up any interesting leads; they had expected this to be a time-consuming process and decided to call it a day, picking up where they had left off next Sunday. It was also discussed that they should meet at least once a week during the evenings to go over the previous expedition and record anything of note while planning for the next one.

Cedric had suggested that once they got to start exploring more populated areas of the castle that they would have to possibly change their exploration to times when people weren't milling about. They didn't want it to become public knowledge that Harry possessed this map or that they were hunting for secret passageways.

They had agreed that they would meet on a rotating schedule during the week to account for particularly heavy homework days or, hopefully if Cedric made the team, quidditch practice. Cedric had wanted to make sure that he had sufficient time to get some training in before the tryouts that would take place at the end of September.

Harry and Cedric walked into the Great Hall and saw that it was about half full. Harry noticed that Neville and Susan and some of the other first years in their house were present and moved to go and join them.

He said goodbye to Cedric and indicated that they would talk later. Cedric waved farewell and went to join some of his own friends. He was particularly close to some of the girls in and around his years because of his charm and easy-going nature. Cedric was an outstanding listener and an all-around good guy. If he had one fault, it was probably that sometimes he focused so much on others than he neglected his own needs.

Cedric also had a few male friends in his year. His best friend happened to be his cousin on his mother's side, Wayne Hopkins.

On his way to join his new friends, Harry briefly glanced at the teacher's table and was able to catch Remus' eye, who had then moved his right thumb to a position that was more positive than negative. Harry took it to mean that the article in the paper wasn't that bad and Rita was continuing her crusade of written slaughter on other people.

Harry nodded his head and continued on to where Neville and some of the other first year boys were sitting. Harry took a seat between Susan and Neville and helped himself to a generous portion of baked chicken and roasted potatoes with a side of green beans.

He exchanged 'hellos' with those that were present and noted how glad that Susan and Neville appeared to see him. He was also quite pleased that he had gotten to know them as well. Especially when he considered that they all had a shared background that gave them a connection that was hard to describe to others unless they had been through something similar as well. Other may be able to sympathize with you, and few may even have the ability to empathize with what they been through, but they were glad that they had found someone that _knew_ everything that they were feeling on the inside without having to explain.

Harry had asked if anyone had a copy of the Daily Prophet and that he might as well look at the article and get it out the way with – but no one had it with them. Neville said he would give Harry his copy when they got back to their dorm. It would probably make sense if Harry got himself a subscription as well, and he decided to do just that when he got Neville's copy of the paper.

They had spent the rest of the meal talking about this and that and other inconsequential matters. The Hufflepuffs were enjoying that the school was no longer sneaking furtive glances their way (or doing less of it at any rate), though he was again impressed by how much tact the majority of the people here seemed to possess. He couldn't imagine saying the same thing about the students at his old school.

As a group, the first years had decided that they would visit their dorms and then take advantage of the warm weather and explore some of the vast grounds of Hogwarts. Neville had given Harry the Daily Prophet, which he had then stored in his room along with his snake. Kaa had been tired from trying to glean anything unexpected from their morning exploration and wanted to nap before dinner. He trusted that Harry would be all right outside with his friends since there would also be teachers enjoying their last weekend of relatively light grading before they would experience quite the uptick in the amount of work that they would take up their personal time.

Harry put Kaa on his bed and scratched his head gently before turning to join the others who were waiting in the common room.

They first spent some time daring each other on who could cross the threshold into the Forbidden Forest and remain there the longest. Harry noted that while Neville was beyond scared – he still made several attempts to cross the edge - and Harry was proud of him for that.

They spent the remainder of the Sunday afternoon sitting on a tree stump that extending into the great lake. The group of Hufflepuffs chatted animatedly about their first week and joked around with each other, ribbing their fellow classmates about some of the funnier moments that had occurred. Such as Hannah Abbot drooling in History of Magic. She had responded that she was amazed that anyone else had been able to remain awake to notice her drooling.

They were leisurely relaxing and some were even enjoying dipping their toes in the chilly water of the lake and reveled in the ripples created by the Giant Squid. The entire lake's surface was like glass until a tentacle or two poked out and disturbed the perfect calmness.

The sun was shinning brightly on this clear day and still had a warmth to it that they could feel on their faces. It was a perfect moment.

A feeling of camaraderie was in the air and despite their different backgrounds and individuality, they were getting to know each other and getting along quite well. They were forming a rather close-knit group and it was rare that no separate cliques had formed, as was very common in the other houses. Hufflepuffs were quite inclusive of others and reminded Harry of his relationship with the Dursleys. There was a live-and-let-be approach; however, it wasn't cold and standoffish. In general, Hufflepuffs didn't seem to care about where you came from; the only thing that mattered to them was what kind of person you were on the inside and where you were going.

It helped that the year was rather small, and that allowed a group of ten to become one of the closer class groups in recent memory. The smaller size was due to the war, as it had taken its toll on the breeding population of witches and wizards and had even ended a few lines. This was something that the blood purists had swept under the rug by proclaiming that those who had been killed were blood traitors even though they espoused the mantra that pure blood was better and should be elevated to a higher standard.

The afternoon was fading into evening and the sun had begun to go down, allowing a slight chill to enter the air. The group slowly and reluctantly left its spot by the lake and settled for bringing their feeling of content with them inside as they headed towards their common room to get ready for dinner. There was about a half an hour remaining and each went their own ways to tie up a few loose ends. Harry woke Kaa up from his nap and fed him a medium-sized mouse before he grabbed the Daily Prophet and read Rita's article.

 **Pettigrew sentenced to life in Azkaban: Black given life back and pardoned**

By Rita Skeeter

 _My dear witches and wizards, yesterday a travesty was corrected and the correct individual been sentenced to life in Azkaban. It pleases me to see that justice was served in the Wizenagamot (for a full account of the trial see page 2), and it is my hope that such a trial is never needed again._

 _It was with a heavy heart that the Minister formally apologized for the misdeeds the newly reinstated Lord Black received at the hands of the previous administration and pledged 100,000 galleons as compensation for wrongful imprisonment. Sirius wasn't able to attend the event in person as he is recuperating in St. Mungos in an effort to assuage a decades worth of horror at Azkaban. Healers at St. Mungos have indicated that Lord Black has suffered greatly and the road ahead will be long and difficult but it is expected that a full recovery is possible. It is hoped that he will be able to rejoin society as a functioning member in a year._

 _I was assured that Lord Black is receiving the best treatment and that the Minister was on his way over to speak with Lord Black in person following the events of the trial. A Ministry spokesperson indicated that Lord Black's time in St. Mungos was also being covered as further remuneration for his imprisonment._

 _I am told that one of Sirius' goals to encourage him along the healing process is his desire to be there for his Godson, Harry James Potter. The young Potter has just started his first year at Hogwarts, where he was sorted into Hufflepuff, and reports from the school indicate that he is fitting in well. I, for one, wish Sirius a speedy recovery and hope he gets to be that Godfather for the Boy Who Lived._

 _Cornelius Fudge should be commended on his tireless pursuit of justice in this and other matters recently as he attempts to reinstate ideals that have been sorely lacking in our government (for a full listing of further corruption uncovered see page 3)._

The rest of the article primarily focused on how the Ministry was attempting to change things and little else was even mentioned of him. Harry was starting to feel anxiety at the thought of meeting Sirius for the first time even though no date had been set. It was hard to read something about an individual that you should have known your whole life if things had been different and were going to get to know in the future. He wanted things to work out with Sirius and constantly had to remind him to take it one day at a time because that was all that he could do.

Dinner time eventually rolled around and Harry collected Kaa and made a beeline for his usual place by Neville for dinner. Neville had asked Harry if he was up for a game in the common room after since they had finished their homework the previous day.

"Possibly, I have been wanting to play Exploding Snap – but I do have to make a quick stop to see Remus and then I wanted to finish this chapter of a book I'm reading. Hmmm."

Harry thought a moment.

He had made a schedule to start tackling the Voldemort/horcux problem and had decided that he would spend an hour a day reading some of the books he had secretly retrieved from Grimmauld Place. He hoped that this would make him feel like he was dealing with this issue appropriately while not putting all of this weight on him to get caught up as quickly as possible. He knew that it would take years to glean all of this information and thought it best to devote some time each day to learn it little by little.

"How about 8:30 then, common room?" Harry replied.

Neville smiled. "Great Harry!" Then Neville proceeded to dig into his shepherds pie hungrily while Harry started piling mashed potatoes on top of his turkey before smothering it all in a very generous glop of gravy. He was loving the home-cooked quality of the meals here; elves really knew how to cook!

The rest of dinner was a brief affair as far as Harry was concerned. He had caught Remus' attention at dinner and indicated that he would be stopping by afterwards to catch up.

His visit with Remus was quick and was basically a checkup with each of them inquiring as to how the other was doing. They chatted briefly about the article and how Sirius was taking things.

"He is in good spirits, Harry. Even though we weren't worried about him being pardoned, it is still a weight that he is glad to be out from under. He is still having his moments when speaking is difficult but the healers are very encouraged about his progress. We were thinking about having you meet him at Halloween. I can inquire with the Headmaster to see if he will allow you to spend the evening at Grimmauld Place. Perhaps we could have a welcome home party for Sirius and give you two the opportunity to get to know one another?"

Remus looked at Harry with mixed feelings. His wolf was becoming extremely possessive of the boy and didn't like sharing responsibility for him but his human side was glad that Harry was going to get his Godfather back. Remus had kept telling himself that Harry had stated that he would always want Remus around and that he wouldn't be selfish by keeping Harry to himself when there were others that could fill a very deep void in the young wizard's life. Like most things, it was complicated. But he was mostly happy for the two of them.

Harry nodded and his eyes were smiling and full of hope.

"That would be good. I think it is the right amount of time for both of us to come to terms with everything, you know? And I like the idea of it being Halloween. That way, I won't have to always look back on that day as the day I lost something, but can now look at it as the day I got something as well."

"That is one way to look at it, Harry, and a very mature viewpoint as well."

Before leaving, Harry was wrapped in a big wolf hug from Remus and given a fatherly pat on the back before being sent back to his common room. As he was exiting the room, Remus wished him a great week as well and reminded him that his door was always open.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think: good or bad. Thanks for reading!**


	17. Draco Malfoy

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading and sorry for an update taking this long! Second, time really starts to move faster now and several weeks have passed. I can't wait to introduce some characters and events and really get this story started, but it was important for me to get Harry firmly established.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; the world belongs to JK. Maybe if we ask REALLY nicely, she will build a Hogwarts for us? Thank you JK for giving us this gift.**

* * *

As the days passed, Harry began to get settled into a routine that was centered on his schoolwork.

In addition to meeting on Saturdays in the library, his study group had now decided to meet on Wednesday nights as well. The group figured that they would get a chance to get the first part of their work done during the week and then tackle the remaining work on Saturday, and ultimately it would give them more time to enjoy the weekends while also allowing them to keep on top of their schoolwork.

Which wasn't going to be actually that much of an issue since the classwork had begun to get more interesting as they moved past the basic, introductory material and really dived into the specific branches of magic with gusto. The Hufflepuffs were also starting to get better acquainted with the Ravenclaws and sometimes even paired up with members of the other house on assignments where they got to choose their partner. At first, some of the Ravenclaws had been hesitant because they didn't think the Hufflepuffs could keep up with their intellect, but they soon became impressed with all of the hard work that the badger house was putting in.

It helped that Harry had quickly established himself as a very good student, while also becoming close friends with Hermione, who just so happened to be nipping at his heels for the early class rankings. Though it was more their closeness that further inspired some of the other Ravenclaws to come and join their study group, like Lisa Turpin – one of the Hermione's better friends within Ravenclaw.

The diversity of backgrounds and personality of Harry's group was fully appreciated when they met on their second Wednesday in the library. Their different viewpoints fostered a lively and interesting discussion on magic, and that was no more evident than when some of the Muggle-borns challenged things that purebloods tended to be complacent with. However, those that had grown up with magic had then thought to question some of the fundamentals of magic that they had taken for granted and had never really questioned before.

And since they had finished their homework for the evening, the discussion had then moved towards Neville providing the history of certain branches of magic that just wasn't covered by the texts since it was so commonplace. It was a win-win for everyone.

However, it was the following Wednesday in which something so singularly odd happened inside of Hogwarts that it was talked about in every single common room that night: a Slytherin had willingly approached a Hufflepuff and had asked to hang out.

The scene that had unfolded in the library was quite shocking to those who had witnessed it as Draco Malfoy sauntered up to Harry's table with Blaise Zabini and Daphne Greengrass in tow, and had asked if they could the study group.

The rumor that had quickly spread through Hogwarts like wildfire was that Malfoy had apparently been giving things a lot of thought since that article about his father's alleged bribes had come out. If some who had witnessed that spectacle were to believed, Draco had allegedly wanted to atone for the sins of his father and distance himself as far as possible from his family's reputation.

In addition, he had gone on to mention that he and Harry shared Black blood through his mother and that meant that they were related. For that matter, he had then claimed relationship to Neville Longbottom through the Blacks as well. However, most of the pureblood families were related if one cared to look back far enough, but Draco would use any angle to further his goals.

Blaise and Daphne had then uttered similar comments specific to their family own history.

Harry was slightly hesitant at first, but couldn't see himself saying no as it could be just the start to change inter-house relationships at Hogwarts. And Draco was family, however distant, and that meant something to him. The others had soon followed Harry's lead and welcomed them to their study group.

Draco had to do a lot of explaining when he arrived back in Slytherin as to why he was risking their house's reputation by associating with mudbloods and blood traitors. Not everyone thought along those same lines but it was the predominant sentiment.

"Use you brains, idiots!" Draco quipped to some of the more vocal third and fourth years who had seen a potential weakness within the Malfoy supremacy and had tried to exploit it.

Draco wasn't having it though.

"Just think about what has been happening. That Rita Skeeter has gone and brought things into light that were best kept where they were: unknown. Public sentiment is overwhelmingly going against us and our beliefs, and, though it is sickening sitting with those buffoons, think about what we will gain in the future. We have an 'in' now and therefore we will use our Slytherin cunning to mold the situation to one that _fits us and sees us_ in a better light. If you have a problem with this, you can just take this up with my father, whose orders I am under to keep the Malfoy name on the top. Right where it belongs."

With that he had turned and walked confidently out of the common room and went to his bed where he had then started a letter to his father indicating the events that had transpired.

Draco wasn't stupid, by any means, and he wouldn't let childish notions prevent him from carrying out his assignment. He had been trained since birth to replace his father and had been given excellent tutors and education on being the head of a house. Even though the Malfoy's were not an Ancient and Noble House, they were extremely well off and were known as very influential and savvy politicians. Draco saw the reasons for befriending Harry Potter and company and would help his father's plan to elevate the purebloods to a higher standing succeed.

For now, Draco just had to be patient and put in some hard work behind the scenes.

And on the other side of Hogwarts, Harry had also needed to do some convincing within the Hufflepuff common room. However, his battle was less steep as Draco's had been.

The people that he had to convince were not as angry about the entire ordeal as the Slytherins; in fact many were just curious and had wanted to know what Harry's reasons had been. All Harry had really needed to do was to reiterate that technically they were family and that he didn't see the harm that could come from just studying with someone. Besides, he explained to them, other Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws would be present should anything happen and that he didn't see the downside in developing more friendly terms with the other houses.

He told them that it could even help reduce some of the obvious tension between the other houses that had the potential to quickly erupt with scuffles in the hallways when teachers weren't around.

Thankfully, most of them accepted his reasoning and respected Harry's, and the other first years', decision to be more inclusive of outsiders.

Cedric had even commented on the whole thing when they had met that Thursday to rehash 'operation: explore the castle' plans. Cedric had mostly thought that it was a good thing but then warned Harry that Malfoy's were known for their skill in being savvy and maneuvering public opinion to their favor.

Harry understood his concern, but again reiterated that studying with someone was hardly letting him or her into one's confidences!

Besides, he knew from Remus and his studies with Orion and Walburga that the Malfoy's had been in deep with Voldemort and that he was taking a calculated risk.

But he knew this, and saw several explanations that explained Draco coming up to him: one, he was being played by Draco – but it didn't count if he knew it and was mindful of it; two, Draco could have been sincere and Harry would treat that in kind while being on the lookout for option number one; and three, Harry could also use Draco as an in with the Malfoys. It was a long shot; and he didn't like using people as a means to an end, but if Draco shared things willingly with him and they developed into true friends – then perhaps this would develop into a fruitful relationship for the both of them.

However, it was far too early to think about all of these possibilities and he would need more information before he could get a sense of where the wind was blowing. Draco had seemed genuine and so Harry had went with it in that moment, and that was the end of it as far as Harry was concerned.

* * *

Before Harry knew it Saturday Morning had arrived and he was heading to Remus' quarters to have his first session with William Abernathy. Harry had faith that this healer would help him remain centered because he had done such wonders for Remus. It was fortuitous that Healer Abernathy hadn't been assigned to Sirius' care since that would have made it professionally difficult for him to provide both of them with the highest level of care. Despite the oath that he took to guard his patient's privacy and secrets, it would have hindered his ability to appropriately provide the best for his patients.

Also, this way he wouldn't be tempted to or mistakenly divulge information that wasn't protected by the oath but still somewhat personal. The oath only covered things that were seen as not being public information, but as with everything, there were always loopholes if one knew where to look. In the end Mr. Abernathy was happy that he wouldn't have to contend with that added distraction.

Harry knocked on Remus' door and was let in by his guardian to see Mr. Abernathy sitting on the couch and having some scones with his tea. Harry moved over to join him on the chair and helped himself to the selection of food that Remus had indicated was his since this was during the long breakfast time that the Great Hall was open. Holding the session at this hour would help to not draw attention to the fact that Harry was missing at a more popular hour and receiving mental care. The stigma of therapy regarding counseling in the muggle world was still present in the wizarding world, except that it wasn't as looked down upon since magic could sometimes have a destabilizing effect on the mind. One of the most commons reasons for seeing a mind healer was to help refocus the control over the witches or wizard's magic again. But that was seen as admitting weakness and some just couldn't afford that to come out.

Remus left them after introducing the two for the second time before saying that he would be having breakfast in the Great Hall and that he would return in an hour.

Harry had just finished eating his first scone with raspberry preserves and was savoring his first cup of tea when William began to explain that the first order of business would be dealing with the oath that he would take to ensure Harry's privacy. It also helped to make the patient feel more open and receptive to the sessions so that they were more honest with themselves. If one weren't being honest with him or herself, then the therapy wouldn't be that much of a help. Denial did no one any favors.

"How are you feeling today, Harry?" Healer Abernathy began.

"I'm fine. Just a little nervous I guess; I don't really know what to expect yet."

William nodded and gave Harry a warm and encouraging look.

"That is to be expected, Harry. The unknown can be scary, but I assure you that whatever is discussed here will stay between us and I only want to help you through whatever it is that you are dealing with."

The healer stressed this point because it was very important that Harry saw him as someone to confide in.

Harry nodded and helped himself to some toast this time and tried a new flavor of preserves.

"Now, before we begin, I would like to walk you through what the oath covers and all that. After, I will tell you a little about myself, and then, if you have something you want to discuss, you may. But I want to emphasize that I will never force you to talk about something. I may encourage you from time to time if I feel it will be helpful, but it is far more helpful and therapeutic if you participate of your own volition; meaning, I want you to tell me things that you want to talk about, How does that sound?"

Harry digested both what the man said and swallowed his last bit of toast. He thought that it was great that he wouldn't have to share something if he didn't want to, and it made him like the man more for giving him the option to pass. Harry was more comfortable with this if he could go at his own pace and liked the direction that they were taking so far.

"I like that very much, sir."

The man chuckled.

"You can call me Will, if you want, Harry. I want you to be comfortable first and foremost, and don't feel the need to be proper during these sessions."

Harry thanked him and used, 'Will,' this time.

Will then proceeded to explain the terms of the oath: they would need to join hands and then he would cast the spell that would hold him to his promise or that he would lose his magic. Harry was at first alarmed, but was assured that this was standard practice to ensure the patients' privacy. He still thought it was a tad excessive, but then again, he wasn't forcing the other man into this.

Will then told Harry of specific circumstances in which he could reveal information – mainly having to do with anything harmful ever happening to Harry or if Harry indicated that he would harm someone else. Or if the person that Will was talking with had already known about this issue and Harry had given him permission to talk about it. Finally, because Remus was Harry's guardian, the magic would allow him to speak with Remus about anything since he was considered a minor. But that he would abide by Harry's wishes whether or not he wanted that to occur.

Harry felt that was reasonable, and was glad that not much had been kept from his guardian.

And then Will tried explaining how this oath didn't cover minor things that would be discussed and that the magic of the spell would decide if it was covered or not. Harry thought it made magic sound almost sentient and he wasn't sure how magic would know which things were more important to his privacy than others and asked for a few examples.

"Very astute, Harry. For example, if you were to tell me about a family secret then I couldn't repeat that to someone. However, if you told me that you hated Charms then that perhaps wouldn't be covered."

Harry nodded – that made more sense hut he still wondered where the line would be drawn.

Will finished by saying that the oath would warn him if he were ever on the verge of breaking it so that he would have to be pretty brazen and stupid to ignore the warning. Hearing William say that made Harry feel better about the whole situation and the man risking his magic to help him.

His reservations were soon forgotten with the mesmerizing display of the magic as the oath was completed by William making a series of complicated motions and wisps of different colors encircled over their joined hands. Harry was finding it hard to concentrate on the words being said with this wondrous display in front of him and almost missed his part in the ritual when he was supposed to bind and hold the healer's oath with his own magic. Harry immediately became aware when the magic had sealed it because the most intense feeling that he had to do something passed through him before leaving just as quickly as it came.

He had asked Will what that had been and was informed that it had been his own magic binding the oath. William further explained that some of Harry's magic had gone into him to enforce that the oath was kept.

The delicacy of the topic and the length of ritual meant that their hour was almost up and Will had wanted to set aside the rest of the time to give Harry an opportunity to come to terms with what had happened and be able to ask any further questions. Mr. Abernathy hadn't expected to get into anything serious until their next session. The plan was to start meeting weekly and then decreasing it to two weeks and then monthly before settling into a routine where he would come when Harry only needed to talk about something. That was how he liked to run his sessions because he hoped to build up someone's ability to deal with the majority of situations on their own and then provide additional support when needed.

Remus returned when their hour was up and walked Healer Abernathy out and then came back to see how Harry was doing. Harry mentioned that it had gone well and commented on some of the magic that had been involved. He had ended with telling Remus that so far he liked the man and that he thought this would be a positive thing.

Remus was glad to hear that things went well for the first visit, and eventually Harry left Remus so that his guardian could work on getting some grading and lesson planning out of the way before he went to visit Sirius that night. He was only able to visit him one day a week because of his teaching responsibilities at the school.

Upon leaving Remus' room, Harry had gone to his dorm room to collect his study materials and some letters that he had written Sharptooth for updates about his account. He had also written a letter to Petunia and had it sent to Grimmauld Place where Kreacher would hopefully arrange for it to be mailed the muggle way. He had also set up an address where he could be reached at for Petunia to respond.

He had spent a little longer than needed at the owlery petting Hedwig and spending some quality time with her, which she loved. She was nibbling affectionately on his fingers as he fed her some treats before he watched her fly off with her deliveries. Harry then returned to the castle and made his way to the library with Kaa, excited to get his homework out of the way so that he could read some of his other books and explore the castle again with Cedric the next day.

* * *

 **Sorry again for the wait with this update. I am hoping to use therapy to provide Harry an outlet and find it easier to let you know what is going on inside his mind. I edited out a large chunk after feedback from the first posting.**


	18. Sirius Black

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading and this is a bonus chapter (SO READ THE PREVIOUS ONE)! Second, time really starts to move faster now and several weeks have passed. I can't wait to introduce some characters and events and really get this story started. It was important for me to get Harry firmly established at Hogwarts and deal (or began to deal) with some of his past. I want him to come across as someone who is more mature and confident in his abilities but on the inside he has issues dealing with things, and perhaps hasn't dealt with them as well as he thought he had. I mainly wanted to introduce a mind healer for Harry because I really think someone who had gone through those events would have serious issues and I think our society has an unfair stigma against people seeking mental help.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; the world belongs to JK. Maybe if we ask REALLY nicely, she will build a Hogwarts for us? Thank you JK for giving us this gift.**

Kaa slithered across the floor and circled around the wooden bedpost, ascending until he reached the black and yellow comforter that Harry was fast asleep under. The snake had taken to exploring the Hufflepuff dormitories and common room at night, finding it easy to slip in between the cracks in the walls. Outside of Harry's room he was able to conceal himself along the wooden beams that ran along the ceiling, but he usually waited until everyone had gone to bed just as a precaution in case of an unexpected student who was still awake.

However, only the rare Hufflepuff with a brief bout of insomnia was ever up at these hours anyways, but it was still better to be safe than to make people wonder why a snake was wandering about Hufflepuff. Somebody would think a Slytherin was up to no good.

Once on the bed, Kaa inched his way slowly over and then around Harry's sleeping form, and climbed up the headboard to rest on his artificially warm nest that Harry had charmed to be nice and toasty for him. Cedric had taught Harry the advanced warming charm one night after they had finished using the map and Kaa was very appreciative. At any rate, he preferred being at this height and now that he was comfortably warm, he was able to stand guard and watch over his sleeping companion.

The snake was also very pleased with the progress that his young wizard had made over the past month and a half in a variety of areas.

Harry and Cedric had made significant progress in exploring the castle and had finished detailing the Astronomy Tower and another tower that housed the Ravenclaw dorms. Even though they hadn't been able to enter Ravenclaw at this time, they had managed to find a set of hidden stairs complete with spider webs and burned out torches that indicated this passage had been unused and dormant for many years. They had discovered the stairs on the bottom floor of the Ravenclaw Tower that had been hidden behind an old painting in which you had to forcefully push an old stone into the wall that was next to the painting. It was fortuitous that they had found it in the first place and it was only because Cedric tripped and had then used the wall to steady himself. The dark passage had led to the very top of the tower and into a smaller, and more private terrace that was above the one offered to everyone of Ravenclaw.

The map had automatically updated itself after the discovery and provided Harry and Cedric a place of complete privacy that no one else knew about. At least that was what they concluded based on the undisturbed dust.

After this incidence, they had decided to retrace some of their old steps and place their hands against the walls and feel their way around just in case they had missed something. However, they hadn't discovered anything else of note using this method and had to be careful to not make others ask why they were walking around the castle hugging the walls.

In addition to his growing friendship with Cedric, Harry had managed to work through several wizarding history books about the time leading up to and including the war with Voldemort. After getting settled into his classes, he had wanted to start his foray into understanding his enemy by trying to grasp the events that had shaped his thinking. He had hoped to uncover some sort of comprehension for why He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did some of the things during his terror campaign that he did, and that maybe this would provide insight if and when he returned.

Harry had also divided up his time for this extracurricular project with beginning to study the foundations of the various branches of magic and why something was classified as light or dark magic. The books that he had pilfered from Grimmauld Place had been instrumental in providing him an unbiased history. So far, he had managed to glean that magic seemed to be classified according to whomever was in power at the time and wanted to regulate certain spells or charms. Sure, some of the magic was quite dangerous and could do terrible – and also quite graphic and inhumane – things, but he could also see the use for some of these for innocuous or even benevolent endeavors. For example, one of the spells that would send someone straight to Azkaban for ten years was the skin-flaying spell. Now, on the surface this spell could do quite obvious harm to a human, but to a cook who wanted to skin an animal – and why the spell had been invented thousands of years ago in the first place – it was invaluable for saving time in the kitchen. Even wizards had to eat after all.

No matter what world Harry was in, be that Magical or Muggle, people tended to be hesitant and wary of things that would give someone else a power over them, and they sure did their best to restrict access to these whenever possible. He could see the need to regulate certain spells, but that didn't mean that everything should be regulated.

In addition to these 'outside of class interests and general life-surviving necessities,' Harry had settled into a nice routine with all of his schoolwork and homework rarely gave him any trouble. It was only when he wanted to add something more or expand upon a topic that he ran into more difficult material that necessitated him referencing the more advanced texts within the library. But even those were easily digested. Harry found that as long as he put in the work to understand the basic material and proceeded gradually with the level of difficulty then he could follow through with the harder material.

Now, just because this was a reasonable plan didn't mean that Harry would – or could - learn everything. Some things just didn't hold his interest and he would never put in more than the required effort to understand them. Besides, there just wasn't enough time for him to learn everything that interested him anyways.

With all of his focus on studying, be that in researching Voldemort or with his class material, Harry had firmly cemented himself as one of the best, if not the top, of his year. He was followed closely in academic ranking by Hermione and Draco. Hermione because she was just as studious as Harry was, but didn't have the same incentive that Harry had to advance her studies. It wasn't like there was a madman that would eventually come back and try to kill her.

Draco was academically inclined because he was a Malfoy and had had access to the best tutors that money could buy. That didn't mean that Draco was lazy by any stretch of the imagination and wouldn't put in the work; because it had been ingrained in him from a very early age that it took skill and knowledge to fully command all of the power and wealth that he had access to because of who he was.

Neville was also doing quite well academically, and his friendships had really opened him up. Gone completely was the shy kid who had appeared to question his every action. He now showed more confidence in his abilities and was even beginning to enjoy his time in Potions.

It didn't hurt that his love of Herbology had given him added insight into the magical properties of certain plants that were used as potion ingredients – and he was using that knowledge and experience to look at other classes in the same light. It helped to give him a tremendous advantage in understanding the foundation of the items they were using and how they interacted with other elements.

And Harry had been right: Snape was not that bad as long as you put in the work and he had even given Neville a book about essential magical plants from his private collection.

Neville also smiled a lot more and had wondered on more than one occasion if his grandmother would even recognize this new person that he had transformed into when he saw her again over the holidays.

That change in Neville became more apparent the longer that he was around Harry; and, therefore, Neville was rarely seen without Harry when they were outside of their common room. They walked to classes together and ate most of their meals in each other's company. Harry and Neville even studied together, but they also had fun. They made sure to take time and be kids and enjoy their youth. It was unhealthy to be all work and no play.

However, they were not a duo because of a certain Ravenclaw, as Hermione Granger had also become fast friends with them and now joined them wherever they want. In fact, she had even become less uptight about schoolwork. Of course, she still strove to be a star pupil, but was starting to appreciate more and more that schoolwork was not everything. It was nice to see her let her hair down and partake in some of the shenanigans with Neville and Harry.

It was because of his growing appreciation and closeness with his friends that Harry had even shared the knowledge of Kaa's existence with them, along with his ability of parseltongue.

At first, Neville had been quite shocked and had had a very negative kneejerk reaction to this information. Harry was momentarily stunned and had a quite dejected look on his face that had caused Neville to think about his actions and the reaction that he had. He had become quiet after that and had retreated to a corner of the room they were in to deal with his inner turmoil and watched as Kaa and Harry interacted with Hermione. He eventually had come to the conclusion that though this had been ascribed as the mark of a dark wizard by society, he couldn't reconcile Harry as one. Especially with the loving and caring way that Kaa would rub up against Harry's cheek or make Hermione giggle by licking her at her fingertips with his tongue.

The Longbottom Heir had been profusely apologetic with how he had initially reacted towards Harry's news and had not asked to be forgiven. Instead, he vowed to not be so initially judgmental of something without thinking about things for himself. He resolved to try and not let previous biases get in the way, and he would confront things as they happened and make decisions based on what was presented to him.

After that incident, Neville would sometimes chuckle when he thought just how much Harry's rational thinking was rubbing off on him. Even Hermione had begun taking some of his way of thinking to heart in the intervening weeks since they had become friends. She had even raised her hand to question something a teacher had said!

Harry had been extremely understanding and had forgiven the reaction that Neville had had, as well as Neville – despite his protests. Of course, the event did make Harry think back to how well Cedric had seemed to take to the news of Kaa and parseltongue when he first found out about those little tidbits. It had hardly phased the older puff and he wondered if that was due to Cedric being older and possibly more mature than the others; perhaps he had learned to think about things before reacting to them or he was just that awesome and put together of a person?

Harry had pushed the thought aside since he felt awkward asking Cedric outright about that, and in the end it just wasn't that important because it had worked out fine.

Hermione on the other hand hadn't been biased towards his revelation of this gift and had been extremely interested in hearing every detail imaginable about their bond. Harry shared some of the things but didn't reveal everything – for instance, he didn't tell them about Kaa's ability to literally kill someone's soul – and his two friends had promised to keep the knowledge of what Harry had revealed private. Then his friends had even returned Harry's gesture and each told something that they had held very close to his or her heart.

Neville had shared that his greatest fear was letting his parents down and that at times he was thankful that he had come so far in such a short time. It was a touching sentiment and they partook in the male ritual of shoulder patting to show support. Hermione had revealed that she was terrified that this was all an elaborate dream and that she would wake up at any time. She still couldn't believe that magic existed and that was part of the reason why she was so obsessed with getting her hands on every little bit of information: it helped to reinforce that this was real. And while she hadn't revealed something that was as emotional as Neville, the others still acknowledged how personal and important the information had been. It had further helped to grow their bond as best friends even more.

Draco, however, hadn't been informed about Kaa or had witnessed what the others had divulged because his interaction with them was mainly limited to the library and being part of their study group. Well that, and the fact that Harry was still wary of the other boy due to the possibility that his friendliness was a ruse. But for now, Harry was going along with it, and he hoped it didn't bite him in the arse later. He had found Draco to be quite hilarious with some of his observations and he was a veritable well of knowledge about wizarding history and culture. Only time would tell where Draco's true allegiances laid and Harry sincerely hoped that he had been honest with them.

Kaa also didn't know how to feel around the young Slytherin because he found it hard to get an accurate read on the boy, and wasn't about to chance his presence becoming known by trying to surreptitiously glance into the young Malfoy's eyes. He had only relied on the general feeling he could taste coming from Draco's pheromones and that hadn't been enough to give him an informed opinion on the subject. It was as if Draco was surrounded by something that distorted his true nature, and although Kaa couldn't get an accurate read off of him – the circumstances surrounding it gave him pause in and of itself.

Kaa's musings about the past couple of weeks were interrupted when Harry began to stir in his bed, stretching his arms over his head. Harry's hands were coming quite close to where Kaa was perched, and he couldn't help playing with his companion by tickling Harry's fingertips with his tongue. Harry giggled at the sensation and then propped himself up to face the snake and begin his day.

" _Good morning, Kaa – did you sleep well?_ " Harry asked.

Kaa lifted his head and peered downwards at Harry.

" _Yes. I like the freedom of being able to roam about at night. I trust that you slept well? You looked very peaceful last night."_

Harry nodded and yawned, still in the process of fully waking up. He pulled the covers up around his head, unwilling to let go of the warmth that his cozy little bed provided.

Kaa continued on while Harry was squirming around under the covers.

" _How are you after yesterday's session? I know that the last few weeks have been difficult for you – and have taken a lot out of you. But I do feel like you are finally dealing with a lot of issues and making progress. While I don't enjoy seeing you hitting bottom and in such obvious turmoil, I believe you are in need of these cathartic releases that you have been experiencing. You are getting to the root of these very important issues."_

Harry's eyes reflected the seriousness of what they were talking about; however, they didn't show sadness nor was the color of his eyes dampened by his hardships. His brilliant emerald orbs shown instead with a determination that highlighted Harry's fierce spirit and will to survive and overcome.

Harry looked so much older than his true age in that moment and the smile that he gave was more out of a content feeling than any true underlying joy.

But Kaa wasn't finished with rehashing the hard work that Harry had put into his therapy.

" _I am glad that you were able to recognize how much not having your parents and getting to know them has affected you. Especially with everything that you have now come to associate them with: integrity, bravery, a fierce protectiveness, and of course, love. The more you got to know who they were, the harder it became for you to accept that they were taken away from you before you got to know them. I can't imagine how hard that was for you to come to terms with – and I mean_ _ **really**_ _come to terms with."_

Harry turned his head downwards to stare at his pillow and his adult smile transformed into a more neutral expression as he thought about what he had been able to overcome in the past month and a half in therapy. So far, they had focused solely on how Harry had been raised and the issues centering on the deaths of Lily and James, to his childhood with the Dursleys, and finally, to his new life with Remus and his insecurities with how things would change when Sirius came home on Halloween.

It was true: Harry had reached bottom in recent weeks, though to him it had felt like he had passed rock bottom and then proceeded to uncover new levels of crap. But he had managed to come back up.

It had helped that Harry had such a high opinion of his mind healer. He was really starting to get comfortable with William Abernathy and it had been a heartbreaking epiphany when he was finally able to see that he had never really come to terms with the events surrounding his parents passing. Nor was he aware of just how much resentment he had had towards Pettigrew for betraying them and taking away a future that he would have traded anything for. Now Harry could deal with this in a meaningful way that would allow him to heal and to move on with his own life.

" _But you were strong, Harry. And I am very proud of you for coming to those realizations and for not shying away from facing them. You know that you are not alone and have people who will stand by you now. You knew this before but I think you now finally understand that_."

Harry took a few measured breaths as Kaa's words had opened up another area that Will had been able to help Harry with.

Not only was Will extremely easy to talk with but Harry found that he didn't have that hard of a time opening himself up to him, and in his opinion, he was able to be more honest with him than he could be with Remus at times. In fact, they had discussed his relationship with his guardian and how Harry was subconsciously afraid of something happening to people that looked after him. Now Harry hadn't told Will about the prophecy or about Voldemort's ability to return at any time, but Mr. Abernathy didn't need to hear about those reasons to get to the root of Harry's problem. While those were certainly issues that made what Harry was feeling very real, they were not the underlying cause of the issue.

Harry needed to comprehend that just because something terrible had happened to his parents, that did not mean that something horrible would happen to Remus or others that took care of him in turn. But that wasn't the heart of the matter either, because Harry was able to talk with Will coherently about understanding that it was their choice to watch over him and put themselves in that position. He may not have wanted them to ever get hurt from him or 'take a bullet,' to borrow from a muggle expression, but he understood after long talks with Remus and Kaa that it was their choice. And Harry would always try to respect the choice of others – even if he didn't agree with them. But the reality was that this was still something that Harry – and most people – would struggle with. Emotions always got in the way of rational thinking. Sometimes it was hard to disassociate how you felt about the matter and the choices that someone else would make.

No, the crux of the issue was about independence and recognizing his own self worth. Harry had had a sudden realization that he didn't like being a burden to others. And even though Remus loved him liked his own, it was Harry who had subconsciously felt like a burden. Harry, who prided himself on self sufficiency had never acknowledged to himself, deep down, that he was not a burden and deserving of love. He had, without fully realizing it, blamed himself for what had happened to his parents. Voldemort had been after him after all, and his parents had been forced to sacrifice themselves for him. Harry didn't want that fate to befall anyone else and didn't know how to fully let someone in because of it.

He had asked Will how someone could be so sure that they were properly dealing with an issue and aware of everything, only to be just exceptionally great at coping with the situation. Will had responded that this was often the reason why people never went to therapy, they didn't think that there was a problem to deal with. Though, Will had stressed that this phenomenon didn't warrant a complete and agonizing review of every issue someone had faced.

He had stressed that people generally knew about the issues that were most important, but had fantastic abilities to convince themselves that they were dealing or had dealt with them. It was the job of the therapist to try and elicit information from his or her patients about whether that was true or not, and then helping the person successfully deal with the issue permanently. Or in most cases – allowing the person to manage their situation to a point where it didn't take away from their quality of life and allowing them to be self-sufficient.

When explained in that manner, Harry could see how easy it was for problems to bubble just under the surface and it gave him a new appreciation that he had this chance to deal with his issues while they were in its infancy. He was very thankful of this opportunity.

Kaa had also been revealed – again, along with his ability to speak with his companion. That had intrigued the healer greatly and he had spent a considerable portion of their allotted time one Saturday speaking to the snake through Harry. In the end, he had been glad that Harry would have someone that he was completely open and comfortable with; however, he had been a little concerned that Harry would or could come to rely too heavily on the snake and would therefore not keep or develop his stronger sense of independence and ability to rely on only himself. Which was slightly at odds with his issues with Remus regarding someone being responsible for him again.

Will had sensed the potential confusion that Harry had with having conflicting problems with his own sense of independence and tried to explain that sometimes people's action didn't have to make complete sense as a whole. Harry could have issues deep down with giving up his own independence with having Remus suddenly being someone that was responsible for him, while at the same time not having that same issue with Kaa, who could develop into a crutch for Harry as a result.

Not that it was bad to rely on others, but in Harry's situation and with everything that had happened or was currently happening – such as dealing with the residual fame from defeating Voldemort (as Harry had not discussed Horcruxes with the man yet) – he thought it was imperative that Harry develop his own internal ability to remain centered and strong. Will had shared his observations with the boy and, in doing so, had discovered that Harry had already begun to rely too heavily on the snake. At his core, he craved the love and attention and, most importantly, complete acceptance that he had never truly received in his short life.

Sure, Harry had Remus and Minnie, and even Snape, now and would hopefully be gaining another parental figure in Sirius – who Abernathy's colleagues had been more optimistic in an even faster recovery time than previously thought – but they were different than his relationship with Kaa. They couldn't enter his mind as Kaa could and Harry wasn't granted access to their thoughts in return. His relationship with Kaa was unique and Will had suggested that Harry do these sessions not attached to Kaa. Will had wanted Harry to face some of his discomfort with asking and answering questions alone without the support he had been internally receiving from Kaa.

At first, it had been difficult, and that sudden separation from Kaa had caused Harry to become acutely aware of what he was covering up. He had gotten so used to Kaa always being with him that he had almost forgotten what it was like to be alone and deal with his longing for unconditional love. Since Harry had been denied it for so long – he had never been able to truly accept it from others, especially Remus. He had thought that he had gotten what he had always wanted and he _was_ very happy with what he had now. But he had never completely accepted his situation. It was such a small thing to finally connect and get all of the dots aligned, but it was the most important!

Harry didn't discuss why Voldemort had been after him but Will had cottoned on to the fact that there was more to the story and more to deal with but was focusing on the issue at hand. And he was right, because Harry hadn't successfully dealt with that issue either. But in all honesty, they would only be able to deal with that if and when this one had been taken care of.

And so some of their sessions had taken two hours as Harry had finally accepted that his parents had died in those unfortunate circumstances and there was no place to put the blame on anyone else besides putting it squarely, and forcefully, on Voldemort. Harry had been absolutely gutted during this entire ordeal, where he ultimately allowed himself to be worthy of accepting Remus' love and that it was okay to view him as a father figure without betraying the memory of his father.

Harry had felt a little silly when it was all over that he had ever felt guilty at Remus' decision to love him unconditionally and had kicked himself for not respecting that it was Remus' choice. Just like his parents had made the choice to die for him and that their deaths were not on his hands any longer. And he would no longer feel guilty for putting Remus or anyone in a dangerous position for being close to him if they chose. This had opened up Harry's eyes that he needed to be more mindful about the choices that others had the fundamental right to make, and even though he understood its importance and prided himself on it - sometimes it was very easy to forget.

Harry had walked out of the last session a formerly broken, but definitely on the way to a being rebuilt, mess. He had taken a break from that day's study session with his friends and had spent the remainder of the day recovering in his room and doing his homework in solitude.

It was one thing to be aware of issues and even understand that a situation existed, but it was quite another – and Harry had definitely learned that – in dealing with said issue. Harry had begun actively working through his problems that he had thought he had handled, but they had merely been scabs that were covering still open and sensitive wounds.

His only other interaction with others that day had been with Remus as he had eaten dinner with him in his private chambers. Remus obliged considering what William had reiterated to him and they had spent some time after dinner playing cards and just enjoying each other's company.

The past week had been a breakthrough in more ways than just beginning to come to terms with all that he was dealing with and a new sense of inner peace – it had also given his Occlumency training a greater connection to the deeper workings of his mind.

In therapy, he had had to go far inside his being to face the demons he was wrestling with and come to an understanding with them. It didn't mean that he needed to deal with them completely, but he did need to become aware that something was still an issue and not just a scab that signified an issue had been dealt with. Harry came to recognize the various open wounds that he still needed to deal with, and with serious work – he would get a handle on them now that Will was helping to put himself back together again.

It was as if Harry had been bandaging himself these last few years, and especially these last few months, to the point that he would still be able to function as if nothing was wrong. But he had seen just how close he had come to losing control of everything and he had been quite thankful that he had been in a controlled environment when the dam had finally broken.

His Occlumency had given him the added insight of seeing into his complete mental landscape and now he would be more actively aware of how he put himself back together again. Sure, it would take a lot of hard, but this was immensely important and Harry would make sure that he did this right. At the same time that he was properly dealing with the issues of his past, he was working at reordering some of his memories as well as strengthening some of his mental defenses. His meditation had improved, and he felt confident that he could progress at a much quicker rate on the next material that Walburga had assigned to him.

With all of this focus on mental healing and moving forward in a positive direction, Harry decided that it would be wise to shelf his animagus training for the time being. He recognized that he wouldn't have the time to do everything properly with the attention that they deserved and this was the least important of things that he was currently working on. No matter how cool turning into an animal would be, it would have been irresponsible of him to not focus on this problem seriously. His health would come first.

Harry brought himself back to the present and squirmed around in his bed pulling the covers over him completely and lying flat on his stomach, enjoying the little nest he had made for himself. Eventually, he got up and forced himself to get out of bed.

Kaa and Harry had then spent some time talking about inconsequential matters as they got ready for the day. Since it was a Sunday, Harry would be meeting with Cedric shortly to continue their exploration of Hogwarts. Today they had planned to explore the area outside of their common room and proceed down the hall to where the kitchen was located. Since they would be so close to the food, they were not going to meet in the great hall for breakfast, but would pick a few things up as they went along. All Hufflepuffs knew that the kitchen was always open and the house elves would serve you whatever you wanted anyway.

The dynamic duo had managed to find a hidden corridor that was known to the elves that connected the kitchens to an unused area that was directly below the kitchens and was used to store pots and pans and all of the dishes. It wasn't as exciting as the staircase they had found in Ravenclaw tower, but it was what was within this previously unknown room that had Harry and Cedric high-fiving. Within this storage room was a statue of a house elf that guarded a circular staircase that descended to the depths below. Cedric had created some blue bell fireballs that illuminated the path before them until they made their way out of the castle and into the light.

The newly discovered passage opened beneath the great bridge that spanned the chasm created by a steep hill on one side and the erection of Hogwarts on the other. Harry and Cedric followed the mighty creek as it flowed into the lake.

"So how has quidditch practice been going, Cedric?"

Harry was curious about all the training that the older boy did. It was obvious that Cedric was quite tuckered out those nights that he arrived to the common room after practice.

"Has it gotten any easier?" He followed up with.

Cedric rubbed his shoulder where he had taken a hit by a bludger during their last practice while answering Harry's question.

"I think I am getting more used to the intensity of it; I thought I was in shape before, but clearly I was wrong."

He paused as they climbed over a fallen tree before continuing.

"Our captain insists on three practices a week. He is really stressed that our first match is against Ravenclaw this year. Normally, we lose to both Gryffindor and Slytherin; therefore, Ravenclaw is usually our only victory for the years we manage to win one. He would have liked us to have more practice, as it is likely our only shot at getting a win this year as well, but I hope he calms down after the match is over in a few weeks. I don't think anyone on the team is enjoying how much we are being overworked. Some people are saying that he is worse than the Gryffindor Captain, Olive Wood."

Harry was glad that he didn't have that additional commitment that playing quidditch would require; he wouldn't be able to add that to his existing extracurricular 'stop Voldemort from taking over the world' activities.

"I'm sure you guys will do great; that one practice I went to was awesome. You guys flew so well and I definitely think you will catch the snitch first!"

Cedric smiled at Harry for the vote of confidence and Harry was trying very hard not to go week in the knees because it was aimed at him. He did his best to concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other and not falling down. They continued walking around the shore and past the boat docks before starting to head towards the expanse of lawn that surrounded the Womping Willow, making sure to keep their distance.

"How are you feeling about Halloween, Harry? Are you nervous about meeting Sirius for the first time?"

Cedric's eyes were serious and full of concern as he addressed the youngest Hufflepuff.

"Eh…" Harry shrugged his shoulders and kicked at the ground as they were walking.

"I am anxious to get this over with. I think it will go fine from what Remus has said and I am looking forward to being back in Grimmauld Place for a night. Remus says that I get to sleep there and he will bring me back in time for Friday's classes to give Sirius and I the entire night to catch up. Kreacher, our elf, is making one of Sirius' old favorites… I think. It'll be nice to get to know someone else that was so close to my parents."

Cedric nodded encouragingly.

"It'll be nice to be among 'family' as well. This is the first year that I will have known everything about my parent's deaths – you remember that The Dursleys didn't tell me a whole lot because they were muggles – and I would prefer not to be here amidst all the celebrating that will surely go on from what I hear. I think that would be hard to face right now, honestly. I don't really feel like celebrating that day."

Cedric felt slightly ashamed that he had brought up this topic that had led to this conversation. The last thing he had wanted was for Harry to get morose over thinking about his parent's death.

"Harry – I didn't mean to intrude… I," but Harry waved him off.

"It's fine, don't worry about it. It's a good thing that I won't be here. I will be among family and friends… It's a positive thing, and I am quite thankful that I get this opportunity."

Cedric let it go and wondered if other people ever thought about the people that had died to rid them of Voldemort. He wished that there were something he could do to show them respect…

By the time they made it back inside, it was close to lunchtime and they went their separate ways, both feeling a little torn. They were certainly making progress and had discovered something new, and they very much enjoyed their friendship and the ability to be frank with one another; however, both left with serious thoughts swirling through their minds. Harry was less okay with the idea of the anniversary of his parent's death than he had let on, but he didn't want to bother Cedric and end their morning on such a negative note. Cedric, meanwhile, was thinking hard about a way that he could introduce some way to honor the memory of Harry's parents and all those who died fighting the Dark Lord.

* * *

The rest of the week really picked up speed for Harry after his lunch with Neville and the rest of his year mates. He was focused on getting all of his work out of the way so that he and Remus could leave after their last class on Thursday and head to Grimmauld Place. Harry wanted to be able to spend as much time as he could getting to know his Godfather and begin to make up for lost time.

Before he knew it, Harry was standing in the Headmaster's office fidgeting nervously as he waited for Dumbledore to activate the floo that would take them both to Grimmauld Place. Harry was excited that they could take the floo this time and wouldn't have to walk until they passed the boundary of the castle's wards; It meant that Harry got to spend as much time with Sirius as possible.

Remus had explained that Sirius had actually gone home to Grimmauld Place the previous evening to get settled in. It would be too stressful moving back to his ancestral home which hadn't exactly provided him with the best memories and being reunited with his godson on the same day. Remus was pleased with how Sirius was handling everything when he had left after getting him settled in, and he was looking forward to the two finally being in each other's presence.

Remus squeezed Harry's hand tightly and lovingly patted the top of his head.

"Don't be nervous, Harry… everything will work out. Sirius is settled in and excited to get to know you after all this time."

Harry breathed in deeply and exhaled slowed before turning to look at Remus and giving him a small smile.

"I know but I just can't help it."

Remus chuckled at how cute Harry was being despite his nervousness.

"And Kreacher really has gone all out with the food. He made entirely too much for just three people – I think they will be eating leftovers for a while."

Remus smirked at him.

Harry rolled his eyes. Of course Kreacher would do way too much; Harry wouldn't have been surprised if Kreacher had managed to have a pig roasting over hot coals for this momentous occasion of having Sirius come back.

Harry took another moment to steady himself before following Remus' lead and saying, "Grimmauld Place."

Harry shot out of the fireplace and managed to catch himself before taking a nosedive in front of Walburga and Orion. Harry greeted them with gusto since it had been two months since he had seen or spoken with them. He had grown incredibly fond of the pair in the month that he had stayed with them and missed them terribly.

"Harry," Walburga began.

"I trust that Hogwarts is going well and your classes are going smoothly?"

She raised her eyebrow slightly at him. Though she too had grown fond of him, she would not tolerate him bumbling through his classes considering all the work they had put in.

"First in the class, and I have missed you as well." Harry said playfully.

"Very good. And I trust everything else has been all right as well?"

Harry nodded again and had to repress a chuckle at her version of 'hello, how are you?'

"Really dear, that is no way to great someone. Harry my boy, get into any trouble so far?" Orion joked, slightly mocking his wife who quickly picked up on it.

If portraits could elbow someone, then that is what Walburga would have been doing. As it was, she was shooting menacing glances at her departed husband. But underneath it all was a very strong bond that few had ever been privy to see. Orion and Walburga Black had been a perfect team and had been, or still were, deeply in love.

Remus was waiting patiently on the side of room for the antics to die down and then led Harry to the dining room where Sirius was attempting to pour his own drink, much to Kreacher's ire. Harry got the distinct impression that he was playing with the elf.

Sirius looked up as they entered the room and his eyes quickly scanned over Harry, trying to take as much of him in as possible and committing everything to memory.

"Harrrrry," Sirius practically blurted.

Harry return Remus' pressure on his enclosed hand.

"Hello, Sirius…" Harry paused, unsure of how to continue.

How did one decide how to handle this situation and say hello to someone that you should have known all of your life? Harry had had a game plan before heading over and had spent some time imagining how this conversation would go. For the life of him, he couldn't remember how it began, or ended. For that matter, he couldn't recall anything.

Sirius seemed to be right there with him. The older man looked much better than his pictures has showed in the Daily Prophet when he had first gotten out of Azkaban. The gauntness was gone from his cheeks and they had a nice color to them now. His brown hair was clean and wavy and framed his face as it fell to his broader shoulders that signaled he had managed to put on some weight. He was wearing a pair of relaxed black trousers that he had paired with a comfortable knit sweater that looked a little too warm for the situation. Sirius couldn't stand the cold after Azkaban and preferred to never feel a chill that would remind him of a Dementor if he could help it.

"Sirius," Remus called in his attempt to break the ice as he walked over to the man with Harry in tow. Remus could see both of them just standing there for a while and decided to just get this difficult 'hello' out of the way and move things along.

"How are you, Padfoot?" They embraced in a brotherly hug.

"Better every day, Moony." Sirius responded with his chin on Remus shoulder as he peered down at Harry.

Remus and Sirius separated and Harry's Godfather approached him and knelt down to one knee so that he would be at his eye level.

"Harry…"

"Sirius…"

They said at the same time. Remus was watching the entire thing and thought that they made the cutest and most awkward pair ever. He was certain that they would have a great relationship once they got over this reintroduction process.

The moment Remus had thought about it, they seemed to fall into each other's arms.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you, pup. I was stupid to go after Pettigrew. I should never have left you alone after that. I will spend forever making up for it. I promise. I'm never leaving your side as long as I live or as long as you'll have me… and even then I will still be there for you."

Harry could only squeeze harder as he felt the nervousness leave his body as a familiar feeling, long forgotten, warmed him from his heart. He could almost remember this man before him and he was very content in this moment.

It had taken some time before everyone acted normal after that, but by the time that they had finished dinner and were talking on the couch it had become just that. There was an ease about everything as Harry talked about Hogwarts and his discoveries so far with using the map. Something which Remus feigned ignorance towards by covering his ears and proclaiming that as a professor he wasn't hearing any of this. The act had made Harry and Sirius guffaw.

They talked about classes and some of his friends that he had made and Sirius had began telling him stories about his parents that even Remus hadn't heard. Harry was practically grinning from ear to ear as he heard about how his father had courted his mother and then finally won her over. They didn't talk at all about that night or any negative events and by the time they went to sleep that night, both had been as fulfilled inside as they had ever been.

Harry had woken up at his usual time the next morning and had gotten ready to head back to Hogwarts. He had also managed to steal another couple of books now that he had a much better understanding about some of the basics of Magic and knew which books to select. He then headed to the kitchen where he had asked Kreacher for a simple breakfast of oatmeal and some juice before pulling out a book and busying himself until the others arrived.

He had just finished his first of cup of tea when the others joined him; Remus was fully dressed for his classes that day while Sirius had a dark red robe drawn around his waist.

Kaa was stretched out on the table, keeping himself warm by being next to, but not touching, the pot of tea. Sirius had taken to meeting Kaa very well, in part because Remus had told him all about and he had had several weeks to get used to the idea. Sirius couldn't deny the ease in which they interacted and how Harry would scratch Kaa's neck softly without even being aware of it. He also noticed how protective Kaa was around Harry and noticed his guarded and protective stance. As a godfather, Sirius was very happy that Harry had that kind of protection, no matter his discomfort with the idea of it.

The Daily Prophet arrived and it meant that Harry and Remus would be leaving in about thirty minutes to head back to the castle. While Remus read the paper, Sirius and Harry talked more about the upcoming holidays and things that they could do and just in general how much fun they would have. Harry could hardly wait for it.

Remus had caught Harry's attention and had directed him towards a section of the paper in the back in which select articles that readers submitted were published.

Harry's eyes widened as he read the short article that Remus had pointed to.

 **In Remembrance**

By Cedric Diggory

 _Samhain has always been a time when families privately honored their departed loved ones and prepared for the upcoming darkness of winter with a last celebration of plenty. It is right that we remember those who have gone on and are thankful for the bounty of the prior year. However, we should also honor and remember those who have made our society better and safer. This year marks the 11_ _th_ _anniversary of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's downfall and while we celebrate our freedom, we speak too little of those who helped make it possible. We should all take a moment and remember, every year during this time, those who we owe so much too. To the Potters, and the Longbottoms, and the Bones… and countless more – we owe you our lives and we are very grateful. You are not forgotten and your memory lives on in us all._

Sirius knew that something was up as he saw tears start to form in Harry's eyes and he looked over concernedly at Remus.

Remus mouthed 'later,' but Sirius was impatient.

"Harry, is everything all right?"

"Everything is great, Sirius… I just have some really great friends."

 **Let me know what you think! And thanks for reading!**


	19. The Joys of Parenting

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, I know that I have spent a little too much time focusing on how Harry is feeling and what is going on in Harry's head but I wanted to give appropriate attention to what Harry has dealt with. For the events that are to come it is important that my Harry is more centered and he needed to get a better handle on some things. The same thing goes for Sirius – I really can't imagine what 10 years in that place would have done and I tried to deal with it as best as I could. This chapter moves things along again and I had so much fun writing the interaction between Sirius and Remus

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; the world belongs to JK. Maybe if we ask REALLY nicely, she will build a Hogwarts for us? Thank you JK for giving us this gift.**

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Remus used his preternatural sense of smell to inhale deeply, taking note of all of the different scents that clung to Harry as his young charge hugged him goodbye before leaving his quarters one Sunday night after stopping by after dinner. The curious guardian catalogued the various odors that identified the various individuals who Harry hung out with that the first-year Hufflepuff unknowingly carried with him, and that any werewolf worth his weight in silver would detect. Remus could smell each little nuance on everyone in Hogwarts that alerted him to whom they spent the most time with.

Whether he wanted to or not, he was aware of every couple – be they friends or something more - in Hogwarts because he could pick out which people smelled the same or close to the same combination. It wasn't even something that he had to consciously think about; it was second nature to most of his kind and his ability was always heightened after a full moon. His brief time spent in wolf form would temporarily elevate his already advanced sense of smell to otherworldly levels, and it was during these few days that he was more aware of his abilities before he got used to them again and they faded into the background.

It was how he had known that Lily and James had shared their first kiss – they had literally reeked of each other for days afterwards. Also, it helped that their scent had changed so drastically so quickly because they hadn't hung out as much until that first kiss happened, forever shaping the rest of their lives.

Remus' ability was also how he knew even before going into Ron Weasley's room to nab Pettigrew where the rat was located. It was an immense boon to Remus and he was actively aware of using it now to watch over Harry and see if anything was amiss.

Harry had all of the usual fragrances signifying his friends: Neville and Hermione were quite evident, along with Hannah and Susan and some of the other first years. He wrinkled his nose slightly at the musk left by Malfoy – already aware because Madam Pince had informed Remus of what had occurred that day in the library. He had been sneaking glances at Draco whenever he could to see if he saw something that would pose any threat to Harry or counteract how he behaved in their study group. So far nothing had happened that indicated there were ulterior motives, but one could never be that sure when a Malfoy was involved.

Now Remus knew that Harry had been hanging out with Cedric occasionally during the week and he figured it had all stemmed from that first night when Harry had alerted him to Peter's presence. But the smell was becoming more saturated lately and it gave Remus pause. He had an inkling that perhaps Harry was not straight, but wanted to wait until the younger boy brought it up. He didn't want to intrude and figured that Harry would come out when he was ready, and if Harry weren't gay then he none of this mattered. Of course, it didn't matter to Remus one way or the other; he would love the boy regardless.

However, that didn't stop Remus from slipping some comments here and there about his positive and supportive views on the topic; he didn't want Harry to ever worry that he would reject him for something like that. And Remus was good at subtly injecting various comments that painted a very open and welcoming atmosphere without Harry being obvious about what he was doing.

But Harry was a _little_ young to be dating and he would have sworn that Cedric was straight. Not that he cared if it ever did happen, but it was the parent in him that thought about these things now. So he had started paying more attention to the matter after Cedric's letter had appeared in the Daily Prophet. Harry had been genuinely touched by the act and Remus had paid attention to the hug that Harry had given the other boy when he thought that no one was looking when they arrived back at the castle – there was something going on between those two but he couldn't put his finger on it.

If he was being honest with himself, it was more of a brotherly interaction that they had going on. Cedric seemed very protective around Harry, but he always acted like a big brother that was just watching out over a younger sibling. But Remus still thought he was missing something.

And the letter had endeared Cedric to Harry's friends, especially towards Longbottom, who had begun treating the older Hufflepuff in a similar, but distinct manner. It was more like a good friend as opposed to a sibling in this case.

Harry had been through too much and had made such good progress according to William that Remus would keep an eye out on how things developed. Any good parent would do the same for someone who they loved and were responsible for. And Remus was also jumping into the parenting game a little late – he had to think quickly on his feet and adjust to his newfound responsibilities while learning on the job so to speak.

The following school week went by incredibly fast as homework was beginning to pile up in anticipation of the Holiday break that would start for Christmas in a few weeks. Remus always tended to give his students a rather light load to do at home, if anything at all, but made up for it by giving them the work to turn in before hand; he wanted them to be able to spend the time at home and relax. He didn't join in with some of the other teachers who tended to assign quite a fair bit of work because he wanted his students to be refreshed for when they came back.

It was a very relieved Remus that greeted Friday night when it arrived, and not just because it brought an end to the classes for the week. Sure, now he had the entire weekend ahead of him and it would allow him the opportunity to get caught up with grading and planning for the weeks ahead. But Friday nights were reserved for him to spend some time with Sirius.

Normally, teachers spent most of their time at Hogwarts during the school year, but this was mostly due to the requirements of teaching and not any hard and fast rules. There were married professors or other circumstances that necessitated a visit home or away from time to time. It was all about time management.

For Remus, Friday nights were the most convenient part of the weekend to slip away for him since Sirius had returned to Grimmauld Place to continue his recuperation at home. While everyone else gathered in the Great Hall, Remus headed towards the courtyard in the direction of the bridge that would lead him outside of the castle's wards. The walk allowed him to mentally prepare himself for the night ahead while the cold air helped to clear his mind and leave his Hogwarts' troubles behind.

Additionally he was looking forward to eating to the simple but sumptuous meals that Kreacher managed to whip up and having a few muggle beers with his old friend. It gave them time to talk about what Sirius was going through on the inside and gave him another person to talk with besides the mind healers that would visit with him during the week. But equally important, it gave both of them something to look forward to; something that brought them both out of their tendency to over focus on past events.

Because both of them were dealing with issues and they found it therapeutic to be able to talk frankly to one another, as if they were back in the Gryffindor Tower of their youth with James by their side. They used this time to reconnect and deal with the loneliness and other predicaments that bubbled just under the surface. Sirius had deep scars caused by his isolation and abandonment in Azkaban, but that was only the beginning of where his problems started. The mind healers were dealing with those deeper and more serious issues because they involved very real physical manifestations of psychosomatic illness that threatened Sirius' ability to function as a relatively normal person.

For example, years of what had amounted to torture left him in a state where his primal urges could override his decision planning abilities if he didn't have a complete handle on things. Sometimes when he was hungry or thirsty he didn't know when to stop because he had endured years of being denied even the most basic of comforts. This was why the mind healers estimated a year before he had the mental faculties to be able to decide things rationally and build up a tolerance to that lack of control and inability to properly regulate and monitor his actions. He was making tremendous progress, and he was motivated by both Remus and Harry to continue his journey every day.

And Remus, well… his situation was quite difficult to put into words as well. Only years of him seeing William for continuous therapy had allowed him to come to terms with how he felt on the inside. However, this proved to be quite useful because this enabled him to know part of what Sirius was going through. They had lost James and Lily, and technically Pettigrew, and that was something they could bond over, and both of them needed that.

Once outside the castle's wards, it took Remus only seconds to apparate to Grimmauld Place and he quickly climbed the steps to enter the home that was hidden to those not keyed into the wards. As usual, Sirius was sitting by the fireplace on the second floor reading a book ensconced comfortably in a plush chair.

"Remus," Sirius intoned happily as he put the book down and rose to greet his company.

A brief hug was exchanged before they sat down in opposing chairs to wait until Kreacher called them to dinner.

"How are things, Sirius? Did you get things taken care of at Gringotts this week?"

Sirius nodded. He had been making trips into Diagon Alley everyday to meet with Sharptooth, who had been recommended by Harry, to deal with the Black family account, as well as his own personal vault.

"I have spent most of the week reviewing the bank statements and getting advice on how to proceed with some of my own intended investments. Did you know all that Harry had accomplished with his accounts?"

Remus shook his head slightly from side to side.

"I can't say that I know much about it. Minerva briefly explained what had happened when they had gone into Diagon Alley and Gringotts when they got Harry's supplies back in August. I believe she had mentioned that Harry was in good hands both financially and with the Goblin in charge of the accounts."

"His name is Sharptooth," Sirius supplied again.

"And I really like him. I can't believe that Harry did all that on his own; the accounts were completely taken care of. All I had to do when I got there was get caught up with what investments were being made for the main vault and I can't say that I disagreed with any of them. The only questions I needed to ask were about recommendations for what to do with the money I received from The Ministry."

Sirius had been pleasantly surprised to find that most of the financial aspects were taken care of. All that was left for him was to deposit his payment for false imprisonment into his own account but also moved the contents of the vault at Grimmauld Place into the Black Family Vault in Gringotts to keep better track of everything and give them more capital for investing. He was also relieved to see that he was set with income for the foreseeable future and it took some of the pressure off and allowed him focus solely on himself and Harry.

Sirius had never been astute with money, but now he was in a position where he was the responsible adult – it was ironic to think that the Sirius that had shirked away from duties in the past had now come full circle to accept them willingly. Shockingly, his parents had let the issue past without comment, but they were both aware, and proud, of the changes in their son. They just wished that it had been a different set of circumstances that had elicited the change.

"Harry really is something else, isn't he?" Remus had an amused glint in his eyes that brought Sirius back to the present.

"You're telling me, Moony!" Padfoot remarked.

"Sometimes I feel like he is so mature in some areas that he doesn't need an adult. Which is absurd, because Harry, of all people, needs someone to be there for him. It is one of the reasons why I try so hard everyday. You know?"

Remus nodded understandingly. It was obvious that Sirius cared for the boy more than his own well-being, and it really was the primary reason for why Sirius was even back in this home that he had spent so much time detesting.

"I need to be there for him, Remus… Harry deserves as many people as possible to make up for everything that has happened… or will happen if Vold-d, you-know-who comes back."

Sirius looked uncomfortable with saying the name. Not because he was scared – he would be damned if he would let that thing close to Harry or anyone that he loved again.

Sirius was uneasy because you-know-who had many supporters locked away in Azkaban. Over the years, the insane mutterings of Bellatrix Lestrange had forever associated Voldemort and Dementors in his mind because that is all he was reminded of when he was there: those horrid creatures and her screams for her master. Well that and being innocent as to why he was there – but that wasn't exactly a pleasant thought.

He would have to face this eventually, and he had hope that he would get there. Everyday, he felt like he was getting a piece of his mind back and was able to face the harder and some of the more unpleasant things that he was working through.

One of those things had been in learning about Regulus. Sirius had been devastated to hear the story about Regulus and the sacrifice that he had made. It was because of his brother, and what he was learning in therapy that allowed him to start letting go of the past.

Of course, he hadn't exactly been thrilled to be reminded about his brother and Severus, but he would make his best effort to have peace with the greasy git. be clear: he was not planning on ever being friendly with the man, but he would just pretend that their past didn't exist and ignore that for Harry's sake given what the future entailed.

All of these thoughts were making it clear to Remus that Sirius was deep in thought about something and he was curious as to what.

"Everything okay?"

Sirius looked up, startled at losing track of things; he was just so used to withdrawing inside his own mind and ever since returning from Azkaban oftentimes forgot that others were present.

"Just lost track of my thoughts is all."

Sirius thought back to what had started him off on this tangent and he refocused his thinking. He wanted to emphasize how he viewed Remus and his friend's presence in his Godson's life.

"Remus, to be frank, you know that I think you are capable of taking care of Harry. And I can see how much you mean to each other, and I am so glad he has that support. I just want to help and be there as well with you both and…"

Remus held up his hand.

"Stop, Sirius. You don't have to explain this; I understand. I want you there for him as well, and I want you to get better. We have both suffered enough and you're right: Harry should have as many people there for him as possible and we will be a team in this."

Sirius smiled at his old friend, thankful that he had saved him the embarrassment of continuing on with his spiel. Sirius had never been one for words, well, that wasn't entirely true. He sure knew how to woo a woman.

They both shook their heads, both correctly guessing what the other one was thinking.

Sirius stood up with slightly blushing cheeks and made his way to the bar.

"What can I get you, you old dog?"

Remus had to chuckle at that.

"I have not now or even been a dog, Padfoot. I would never claim to know what flees feel like and so I can't sympathize with you."

Sirius smirked at his comeback as he poured them both a nice stout to drink before dinner. Kreacher was making a rich stew tonight and the beer would pair perfectly.

He raised his glass towards the one person in this world who understood him best and they took a silent toast in appreciation that at least they had each other and Harry. It was a very modern family; two straight males, one a werewolf and the other a former prisoner coming together to raise their deceased friend's child who was prophesized to fight a Dark Lord. Even by wizarding standings it was a lot to take in and process, but it was what they had to do.

They moved towards the dining room and took a place next to each other among the oversized table that could fit twenty people.

"How is Harry doing, Remus; tell me again." Sirius had been beyond impressed with the boy at Halloween, and with every detail that Remus would tell him he became even more enchanted with his Godson.

Remus's advanced nose couldn't help but begin to take apart the various tantalizing odors coming from the meal that Kreacher had just placed in front of them: lamb stew with roasted potatoes that were unimaginably tender. His first bite only intensified his senses and Remus could swear that he could taste the grass that the lamb had fed on. Kreacher's cooking was above average, even for a house elf.

Remus eventually responded to Sirius' comment about their charge, noting that he too was savoring every bite. It was the little things that Sirius appreciated the most these days and he never took a single thing for granted, because that is what Azkaban had done to him.

"He is so like his parents, Padfoot. He has all of Lily's smarts, but with James' sense of adventure. He has a great group of friends and has really hit his stride with his academics. I am so glad that Will was able to see him and I think he has really blossomed and opened up. There is a weight that is gone from his shoulders and he seems so happy now, Sirius."

He took a moment to collect himself. All of these parental hormones were surging through him and threatening to make him cry because of how proud he was of the boy.

Sirius was right there with him. Even though he had met the boy once, they had been exchanging letters and had gotten to know each other more in the weeks following their reunion. They were usually short and not very detailed with important and personal information, but it was enough to anticipate hearing from someone everyday and slowly getting to know someone that he had been so attached to. Sirius was very much looking forward to the coming holidays and the extended time that they would have to really be a proper family for the first time.

"And has he found his Lily yet?" Sirius asked, half jokingly and half earnestly. James had been over the moon with Lily the first time he had seen her and no other girl ever held a candle to her beauty for him. As far as James was concerned, Lily was the only girl in the world.

Remus sighed, and that did not go unnoticed by Sirius. Remus was unsure whether to vocalize his suspicions about Harry's sexuality. He wasn't one hundred percent sure, but he was pretty sure and didn't want to bring it up; he didn't know how Sirius would take it.

"Well," Remus began hesitantly, "Harry has some close friends who are girls but nothing to indicate a potential interest among _them_." He subconsciously stressed the last part.

Sirius took note. He was not as daft as people always assumed that he was, because if anything things went over his head it was merely because he was disinterested in them. When things mattered to him, and Harry certainly was at the top of that list, he didn't miss anything.

"So… is there a boy that has gotten his attention?" Sirius announced in a frank manner as he helped himself to another portion of stew and refilled both glasses of stout.

His stomach was still getting used to the sensation of being full now, but it was so delicious and comforting that he couldn't stop himself even if it would soon make him uncomfortable.

Remus's eyes darted up from his place and he opened his mouth in realization that he had been more forthcoming than he had wanted to. Crap, he didn't mean for this to happen.

"I don't know for sure, Padfoot, but I think Harry may be gay." Remus was looking at Sirius nervously for any sign that he would take this badly. This would not be good for the developing relationship between Harry and Sirius – nor would it be good for his relationship with the boy if he unintentionally 'outed' him.

Sirius raised his eyebrow as he placed Remus' now-filled glass before him.

"Really, Remus?" Sirius said in a mocking tone.

"You think Harry could be anything that would make me uncomfortable or stop loving him?"

Remus looked properly ashamed, but he wouldn't have done things differently. He was a parent and had to place Harry's needs above his own.

"I just want the boy to be happy, Remus." Sirius sat back down and ran his hands through his hair that finally had all of its luster and sheen back.

"I don't care who he is attracted to or how he identifies. My only concern is the road ahead for him… I can't bear to see him hurt or faced with the realizations that being gay will add to the weight from being the 'savior.' It will make things harder for him and that is something I will worry about."

Sirius pushed his plate away from him. He was no longer was in the mood to over-indulge in this meal when there were potentially important implications before him.

Remus nodded in agreement. He felt very much in agreement with Sirius on that.

"I know what you mean, Sirius. And again, these are only my suspicions. You know how my sense of smell is – I know everyone that he spends in prolonged contact with."

"So is that what makes you think he may be gay?" Sirius asked curiously as he took a sip from his stout that warmed his stomach as the alcohol raced through his body, providing him a temporary sense of comfort and contentment.

"Well, it is a part of it, but I have noticed how he interacts with one boy in particular and it is very strange. I would hesitate to classify anything other than a big brother watching out for a younger sibling, but at the same time, I know that isn't an apt description for how they interact. There is something that I can't explain that makes me think there is something going on between the boys. But, I will emphasize that I don't think they are aware of this – they just enjoy each other's company for the time being."

Remus had finished his own meal and was sipping at his beverage, looking for the same comfort that Sirius was currently getting out of his own glass.

They moved to the fireplace and continued their discussion amid the roaring fire.

"So who is it, Remus? Who is the future, Mr. Potter?" Sirius said jokingly.

Remus snorted.

"It never ceases to amaze me how you can be so mature one moment and then proceed to being inappropriate in no time at all."

Sirius winked at him, then attempted to reign in the conversation.

"In all seriousness, Remus. You know me, and that's how I deal with things. Plus, it makes people's reactions priceless."

"And it's such a great quality, mutt," Remus responded sarcastically before being serious again.

"Cedric Diggory, he's a Hufflepuff and a third year. He is the new seeker for them as well, in fact the first game is tomorrow… you should come."

Sirius was both tempted and scared at the proposition. It would be his first time back at the castle without James and Lily and the only place he had been since Azkaban. Well, besides St. Mungos, Grimmauld Place, and Diagon Alley. It was slightly uncomfortable to think he was ready for that, but he so wanted to see Harry again. And see this boy and gather his own opinion on the subject now that he had heard Remus' thoughts on the matter. Though he didn't think he would actually be able to watch them interact since Cedric would be playing. But he could see Harry and that was difficult to pass up.

Remus was paying close attention to Sirius' reaction and decided to give an added incentive.

"We could use glamours, even. Going incognito would allow you to be there without anyone even knowing. Ease you back into the whole society thing, in time you could be able to meet Harry there for games in the future."

Remus knew how to bait Sirius, and it worked. Though, it wasn't like Sirius would have said no to this opportunity, or any opportunity, if he got to see his pup.

"Well how can I refuse that offer?" Sirius smiled as he sat back into the couch and rested his head while closing his eyes, wondering about what tomorrow would bring.

"Is that Amos' boy?" He thought aloud, fairly certain of his lineage but asking Remus to confirm.

"The very one."

Remus finished the rest of his drink and checked his watch. It was getting late and he would have to leave soon and head back towards the castle. Teachers could leave during the evenings, but it was preferred that everyone slept in the castle just in case something happened with the students. Hogwarts was responsible for their health and well-being after all.

"He wrote that letter in the Daily Prophet, right?" Sirius said suddenly, remembering the deeply satisfying and heartfelt look on Harry's face as he told him that he had some great friends. Maybe Remus was reading into things correctly, that level of friendship to go and do something like that was a little advanced for how short a time they had known each other and their respective ages. It was something that even James and Sirius wouldn't have done for each other and they had known each other for years by the time they had gone to Hogwarts. But that was more due to them not being as outwardly emotional in how they expressed how much they meant to one another.

Remus nodded again. He had longed since worked through the same logic that Sirius was now beginning to process. Maybe this was a good thing to get Sirius' opinion on the matter.

So Remus added a little more food for thought.

"The letter endeared Cedric to all of Harry's friends, especially Neville Longbottom and Susan Bones. They really appreciated the sentiment. Say what you will about Hufflepuff, and in our past we were guilty of making fun of them, but it is a rather impressive display of support among students so young."

Sirius nodded in acknowledgment of their past didoes. 'Perhaps Hufflepuffs were the ones that had it right and knew what was most important all along,' he thought to himself before remarking on the tragic fate that had befallen Frank and Alice.

"It was a terrible thing that happened and it was a serious setback when I found out about that. How is Neville doing? How badly did living with Augusta mess him up?"

During the past few months Sirius had become aware of the changed nature that Madam Longbottom undertook as a result of losing her son and daughter-in-law to a fate worse than death. He hoped that Neville would not be too messed up as a result of everything. It was fitting that both him and Harry were friends; they sure had equally heartbreaking events take their parents away from them.

"I have noticed a tremendous change in him since he has been at Hogwarts. His friendship with Harry has really opened him up and he even enjoys potions now, from what Harry tells me. I think Augusta is going to be in for quite a shock when she greets an entirely new person at King's Cross in a few weeks."

It warmed Sirius' heart to know that Harry was having such a positive effect on someone and that he had a friend who understood what he was going through.

They each took a few moments to finish their private thoughts before it was time for Remus to leave.

Remus was the fist to stand.

"Well, I think I must be going. I'll set up the floo to my office and you can come through at eleven and we can watch the game – just make yourself unrecognizable and resist the urge to come through as a dog, understood?"

Sirius snorted and walked him to the door.

"Then perhaps we can get a meal at the Three Broomsticks before you head back. I myself will then have to commit myself to my room and get through all of the grading and lesson plans for the week. Christmas cannot come soon enough."

Sirius agreed wholeheartedly with that. The Holiday Season could not come soon enough for him and he wrapped himself in another hug before letting Remus out and then closing the door behind him.

* * *

In what felt like a blink of an eye, he soon found himself walking out of the floo into Remus' office and disguised in a very boring character that reminded him of the friends that his father had used to work with all the time.

They slowly made their way towards the quidditch pitch because Sirius was having slight difficulties with processing being back among the place that he and his friends had so thoroughly explored. It was bittersweet and he had a hard time expressing himself towards Remus.

They were soon joined by the long march of students talking excitingly about the first match of the season. Hufflepuff versus Ravenclaw may not have been as exciting as Gryffindor against Slytherin, but it was still quidditch and there was still pocket money to be made with a well-placed bet.

Far more people had been in the Great Hall that morning than usual for a Saturday breakfast because of the game. This was always the case because of 'quidditch fever' but it was especially palpable in the air today because it was the first match and each house could still dream about winning the Quidditch Cup.

They sat down in the back of the teacher's stand and were soon joined by Minerva, who had quickly deduced who the unfamiliar man with Remus was. Most of the other teachers had come to the same conclusion and briefly said hello, but were aware enough of the situation not to draw unwanted attention towards the pair and give them space.

Severus had sat with the Headmaster towards the front and both had inclined their heads in Sirius' direction; however, only Dumbledore added a smile to go along with the nod.

Soon the crowds filled the stands and a hush settled over the stadium as Madam Hooch prepared to start the game. Both teams took to the air as the crowds roared for their chosen teams.

Ravenclaw quickly established dominance and had an ever-widening lead due to their chaser's ability to skillfully handle the quaffle. Of course, they also had superior brooms – but that tended to give more of an edge to the seeker. Chasers could get by with an older model if the team worked well together and could execute complicated plays seamlessly.

The match continued on for some time before it really started to get interesting.

Cedric swerved at the last minute to avoid the incoming bludger that was aimed at his head; it was a daring move and there were a few gasps from the crowd as he rotated nearly one hundred and eighty degrees to nearly fly completely upside down. With the momentary threat passed, Cedric turned upright again and set off in search of the snitch.

Hufflepuff was currently one hundred points down to Ravenclaw an hour into the match and they would need the one hundred and fifty points for catching the snitch, and soon if they had any hope of winning. Since the start of the game, it had been clear that Cedric was their only hope; the chasers of Ravenclaw were just too good and Hufflepuff's beaters just couldn't unseat them – no matter how hard they tried.

Cedric's nerves about his first match had abated as soon as Madam Hooch's whistle had sounded; he just didn't have the time to worry as he was focused solely on trying to spot the little golden ball that seemed to flicker in and out of existence as it zoomed quickly about in an unpredictably direction. He was barely registering any of the screams and cheers from the crowd and the cold, late November air had yet to breach his own sophisticated warming charm that he had applied before the match.

After another successful dodge of a bludger, Cedric spotted something shiny darting behind the Ravenclaw goalpost. He concentrated even harder on willing his body and broom after that golden ball. The other seeker's strategy had changed after the game had progressed to following Cedric because it was clear that he was the better competitor. As long as Cho, a third-year Ravenclaw who was also in her first game, delayed Cedric in getting the snitch until her team was one hundred and sixty points up, the game was theirs.

But Cedric had the faster broom and a fiercer determination to win - and she wasn't able to prevent him from closing his fingers around his target and giving the match to Hufflepuff.

Cedric was thrilled and beyond relieved; he had done it! He flew to the ground amid the cheers from the Hufflepuff supporters with the golden snitch raised in his right hand, triumphantly proclaiming victory against Ravenclaw. It had been a thrilling match and Hufflepuff had fought valiantly, though they had needed him to catch the snitch to win. And Cedric came through and did just that.

Cedric joined his fellow team members on the quidditch pitch and they all joyously congratulated each other, with Cedric receiving most of the praise for his daring catch that had sealed the match for them. In no time at all, they were bombarded by the rest of the puffs who had moved to join them in celebration on the field. Harry and his friends were among the gleeful supporters and Harry had hugged Cedric enthusiastically, commenting on how brilliant his moves had been and the artful way in which he won the game. Neville was thrilled to be next to the star of their team and congratulated him as well.

The cold and bitter air was overcome by the heat that was generated from the large body of students that had congregated around their victorious team. There would be a very large celebration in Hufflepuff tonight and Professor Sprout looked absolutely delighted as she shook Professor Flitwick's hand in the teacher's box. Her plump cheeks were flushed both from the cold and the excitement of the game. Flitwick took the loss in stride and graciously accepted defeat with all of his seventy-five pounds.

The Gryffindor and Slytherin quidditch players that were in the stands took note of certain players on the field and were definitely intrigued with how the third-year Hufflepuff had performed in his first outing as seeker. The rest of the Hufflepuff players were decent but both teams were confident in the ability to outplay them; their only concern was how Cedric had played. Unless the game was played for an amount of time that allowed the dominant beaters and chasers to assure victory, the winner was usually determined by whomever caught the snitch. A great seeker could save their team from defeat if they caught that one hundred and fifty point boon, and Gryffindor and Slytherin couldn't allow themselves to be complacent and rest on the laurels of their other superior players. Their game plans would have to be adjusted accordingly and neutralize the threat so that they could win.

Cedric was hardly aware of who was near him as a wave of yellow and black supports trudged back to the castle. He was in a state of euphoria and was glad his first match was over because the nerves that had threatened to overtake him the previous week were now gone. He barely registered that they had made it to their common room and, in no time, it was transformed into a celebration of Hufflepuff's achievement that had lasted until dinner.

Remus was present along with the rest of the staff and he looked out into the student body gathered for dinner in the Great Hall. The Ravenclaw Table was crestfallen, but not as much as the other houses would have been if they had been dealt a disappointing defeat. Ravenclaws could always find some way to bring up their spirits with a good book or an interesting debate. In this case, they were over-indulging in their studies as if to make a statement to the school that said, 'so we may have lost at quidditch but we are the better students.'

However, Remus was immensely proud to watch both Harry and Neville seek out Hermione and exchange a few words that ended with a friendly hug for each of them. No doubt they were telling their friend that quidditch or some such notion of house rivalry would never get in the way of their friendship. Remus was inwardly amused that quidditch fever had even manage to get into Hermione and was the reason for her apparent hoarseness as both Neville and Harry appeared to have trouble understanding her.

This display of friendship had taken Remus back to his late lunch with Sirius in the Three Broomsticks and he got quickly lost in his memories.

 _"_ _Well, that was certainly something," Sirius barked out after they sat down to a table with their butterbeers in hand._

 _"_ _Cedric can really fly on a broom – I mean he doesn't have James' grace in the air but he gets the job done and he has plenty of time to develop that before he leaves. He may even be able to go professional if he wants to."_

 _Remus quickly agreed with him as he took a comforting sip of the sweet drink._

 _"_ _And I see what you mean about those two, Remus. I noticed the hug that Harry gave him afterwards – I don't think either realized how Cedric's arm lingered around Harry's shoulder. I really see what you mean about the brotherly thing but it doesn't quite capture it all…"_

 _Sirius brought his hands to his mouth and rested his chin on his thumbs. Seeing how the boys interacted had reminded him of his own brother._

 _"_ _Reminds me of how I used to be with Regulus, when were little and before we came to Hogwarts. When I wasn't with James, we went everywhere together… I wondered what happened to bring those two so close together in such a short amount of time."_

 _Sirius had quickly moved on from thinking about Regulus; he had very mixed emotions about his brother and hadn't been able to let go of the guilt for not being there for him more._

 _Remus could only nod and reached across the table to place his hand on Sirius' shoulder in a show of support._

 _He continued on after what he thought was enough time to show his respect towards the sensitive subject._

 _"_ _I don't know how they got so close," Remus remarked as he bit into his turkey club._

 _"_ _The only thing I can think of is that Cedric was the one that brought him to me that first night when we found out about Pettigrew. I asked him to stay with Harry as I dealt with everything – maybe they really bonded over that. I can't imagine what was going through Harry's mind at the time. Whatever it is though, it doesn't seem to be a bad thing."_

 _Sirius suddenly started laughing, which caused him to choke on some of the butterbeer he had just taken a sip of. Remus was bemused at his friend's sudden outburst._

 _"_ _Look at us, Moony. Who would have thought that the two of us would ever be here worried about raising a son together? If I didn't know any better or it wasn't so horrific considering what happened, I would have thought this would have been the best prank James could have played on us."_

 _The laughter soon turned to deep breaths as Sirius steadied himself. Tears were beginning to form in his tired eyes and he looked to his friend for comfort._

 _"_ _We have to be there for him, Remus. And I need you here for me. I need to be strong again, and I'm getting there. I just want to make James and Lily proud and do right by Harry. Though I'm scared I won't be good enough – that we won't be good enough."_

 _Remus reached out for Sirius' hands._

 _"_ _I know what you feel, Padfoot. I wish James and Lily could be there for him as well. And they are, they live on in him. He is a remarkable young man and we will get through this. We will be there for him, in whatever way we can. I promise you that. And I promise to be there for you as well. We'll make a good home for us all."_

 _Sirius nodded appreciatively and regained his composure after a few minutes. He was getting better at managing these bouts of depression, but he knew he had a lot of work still left to do. Sirius was looking forward to the time before Harry would be coming home for The Holidays because it would give him a little more time to get stronger for Harry and more of himself in order._

 _Harry was his reason for not giving in to how hard rejoining society was, and he would do everything in his power to take care of James' son. Him and Remus were an odd pair to raise a child, but they would provide a loving and supportive home for Harry. And in the end that was all that really mattered when raising a child._

 _Remus had to wipe a small tear from his eye at the dinner table in the great hall as he finished reminiscing about the fight and determination in his friend. 'Or co-parent,' he thought as he shook his head._

 _Sirius had made tremendous progress and was more focused than he had ever seen him. Perhaps the responsibility of being a parent was the kick that Sirius had needed to shed some of his more immature and childish tendencies. It had happened to James when Lily had gotten pregnant._

Coming back to the present, the Hufflepuffs were now finished with dinner and were anxious to restart their celebrations now that Dumbledore had dismissed everyone. Some of the older years made a small detour to the kitchens to pilfer some more beverages and pudding before returning to their common room for a party that went on into the night. Hufflepuffs had little to be outwardly proud of when competing against the other houses and they were going to savor this moment. Everyone's spirits were elevated and all of the spent energy meant that all Hufflepuff's slept soundly that night.

Harry had enjoyed watching Cedric streak across the sky in pursuit of the snitch and cheering for Hufflepuff. Neville and him, along with the rest of their year mates, had been hopeful for a Hufflepuff victory all week. Neville and Harry had even painted their faces half black and half yellow in support of their house and it had stayed on throughout the day and only came off before they went to bed. Harry was having the time of his life and today had been one of the best days that he could remember.

Harry was reveling in the easy camaraderie that Neville and him had established, and they had made it a point to seek out Hermione at dinner and let her know that her friendship wasn't forgotten. They didn't want a silly thing such as house rivalry get in the way of what was becoming a very strong bond. She did remind them not to forget their study date, which had been pushed to Sunday on account of the match, and was met with several pairs of rolling eyes.

The only downside to having the quidditch match was that Harry and Cedric wouldn't be able to explore the castle together the next day as both had to catch up on homework that had been put aside for the game.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think! I think Remus and Sirius being co-parents is hysterical and so very touching. Have a great week!**


	20. A Secret Room

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, I'm glad you liked the interaction between Sirius and Remus.

The story is picking up speed and I will finish out the year in the next couple of chapters because Harry's second year will really be when everything takes off.

Just as a general FYI: my version of the castle may be quite different than in the books. Forgive me in advance if I put something that is seemingly out of place from canon.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; the entire world belongs to JK. Maybe if we ask REALLY nicely, she will build a Hogwarts for us? Thank you JK for giving us this gift. Like really, you are responsible for 80% of my ability to procrastinate.**

* * *

Harry was currently enjoying the sparsely populated common room with Neville and Cedric since almost everyone else was busy doing last minute packing. The students would be leaving immediately after breakfast tomorrow, and like most things, it had come down to the last minute for some people. A few of them had even endeavored and succeeded in getting all of their homework done, ensuring that they would be able to enjoy complete freedom for the holidays.

There were only one or two other students about and they were in the process of packing up and heading back to their rooms. Soon it was just the three of them playing one last game of Exploding Snap.

Since Harry was not going home on the Hogwarts Express, his friends decided to make the most out of tonight and had gotten their stuff taken care of earlier in the day. It just didn't make any sense for Harry to go home with everyone when he could just leave with Remus later and just use the floo and be home in a matter of seconds. Besides, Harry wanted at least _some_ time alone in the castle.

And sure, Harry would miss the extra leisure time he would get to spend with his friends on the ride to King's Cross, but that was why some of them were hanging out with him now. Anyways, Cedric and Neville really didn't have that much to pack and were well on top of their homework that had been assigned over break. Cedric's quidditch practices had made him efficient at getting his work done timely and effectively, while Neville spent his time with Harry and Hermione and that explained why he was always up to date.

The boys were all talking animatedly about the upcoming break and what they were most looking forward to at home. Neville and Cedric talked about certain traditions that their family performed while Harry began to think about what traditions he would start at Grimmauld Place. Their discussion about home and family really filled them all with a holiday spirit and Neville began to look forward to visiting his parents for the first time; he was no longer ashamed about his situation and a large part of that was due to Harry.

But they were still children, and they were mostly just looking to relax and be able to do their own thing for just a little while. It would be nice to get out from under schoolwork always hanging over their heads, and just recharge their body from all of the casting that they did. After a while, it really became quite difficult to keep one's energy levels up; especially for the first years, who were unprepared for the constant drain. It was one of the reasons why the students went home for three weeks during the school year; after centuries of teaching magic it was apparent that while repeated tuition and practice was necessary for being a successful witch or wizard, it was imperative that their bodies be given sufficient periods of rest from time to time in order to recuperate.

Magical exhaustion was a serious matter, and Harry was all too familiar with its effects. However, once the core became more stable as they aged, continual casting no longer became that much of a concern except in rare cases where excessive high-energy spells were used repeatedly over a short. But for the average magical being, their core adjusted to how much magic they used in a very similar manner to how a muscle would over or under develop according to how much it was used.

At any rate, the boy's card game was winding down and Neville was close to winning for the third time in a row – he just had a real proclivity for Exploding Snap that neither Harry nor Cedric possessed. Soon everyone called it a night and they exchanged well-wishes for a happy Christmas and then Neville and Cedric headed up to their rooms to be sure they had everything that they wanted to bring home.

Harry remained where he was in the common room because he was currently too cozy next to the fire on the couch and was going to take this opportunity to have the room all to himself. He wasn't worried about packing because of all of his belongings were already stored in his suitcases and he could always catch up on sleep over break. Plus, Remus and him weren't going to leave for Grimmauld Place until tomorrow evening because Remus had 'things to take care of' the next day which was his way of saying he too wanted to get his work out of the way.

With the rest of Hufflepuff in for the night, Harry chanced bringing out the Marauder's Map while lying on his back. He opened up the parchment and activated it, with Kaa taking this opportunity to roam free on the rafters. Nothing interesting was displayed because no one was out of his or her own room. Even the teachers were safely ensconced within their own quarters!

Disappointed with having no one to follow as they made their clandestine rendezvous, Harry settled on studying the Hufflepuff dorms in more detail. His focus with the map had mostly been centered on the rest of Hogwarts and he thought it was about time to see if anything looked amiss here.

It really was amazing when he thought about it; here he was sitting on the couch and he could tell where every person in Hufflepuff was and even the shapes of their rooms. Off of the common room there was a hallway that led down various corridors to each of the years that were clustered together. Some halls were straight while others had jutted out here or turned sharply there and seemed to make the most for fitting all of the students in the space provided. Stairs accessed some of the rooms below, while the rest were either on the same floor as the common room or on the level above them. There was no divide between male and female housing since everyone had their own room; however, each year did have a separate male and female shower and bathroom area.

He was in the process of noting the divide between the hallway and the common room when he finally figured out why his eyes kept coming back to one particular spot on the map: something just didn't add up. Curious, he got up from the couch and walked over to the other side of the common room and stood next to the wall that just seemed to be out a little farther than it should have been.

He spent a moment studying each individual stone and tried to look for a hidden crevice or some other indication that hinted at something waiting to be discovered. The stones that made up this section where slightly different than those used throughout the rest of the common room, and only became apparent if one really concentrated. The stones were the same size, perhaps a little bigger than a brick, but instead of edges that were ninety degrees, these were more rounded. In a weird way, it somehow reminded him of the entrance to Diagon Alley from the Leaky Cauldron; those bricks had smoother edges as well because of the constant grinding caused by shaping the entrance.

'It couldn't be the same,' Harry thought as he slowly took his wand out and began tapping it in the pattern as the one used to gain entrance to Diagon Alley. And he was partly right: it wasn't the same pattern.

Intrigued, he kept tapping various patterns until he tried the four tiles that were directly in the center of the wall that made a very fat cross. Harry's breath caught in his throat as the wall began to slowly change into an arched passageway that revealed a descending staircase shrouded in darkness. He just stood there, stunned that this was hidden right in plain sight and no one had even noticed.

His mind wondered how it closed and his wand, without him thinking about it, went to tap the stone arch at about the same height that his wand had been when he had revealed the door. The intricate moving of the tiles as they reformed into a solid wall left harry with a dumbfounded look on his face.

At first he had been momentarily dazed, but when he had come to his senses, he attempted to repeat what he had just done to prove that it hadn't been a fluke. Harry was delighted to discover that he had discovered something new and couldn't wait to see where it led.

A low chuckle escaped his lips.

He was about to open the door for a third time when his wand paused and he refrained from unlocking the hidden door; he wondered if he should go and share this with Cedric. Though Harry wanted to first discover the Chamber of Secrets by himself, he hardly thought that the entrance to it would be hidden away in Hufflepuff. As if Salazar Slytherin would ever set foot in this place.

It didn't take that long for Harry to decide that Cedric would want to be here for this, and he set off in the direction of Cedric's room. Kaa was pleased that Harry hadn't rushed into the unknown and approved of Harry's plan to bring someone along. Although, Kaa did understand that for Harry it was hard to delay action on something that was otherwise exciting and force himself to think through it rationally. Especially considering that it involved secret passages in a thousand-year old castle.

Harry knocked lightly on Cedric's door so as to not wake anyone else and he hoped that Cedric was still awake. Harry really wanted to go through this rabbit hole as soon as possible, and with Cedric if he could.

He sighed in relief as his door opened to a slightly bewildered Cedric who wondered what else Harry could have possibly gotten himself into this time, though Harry's manic grin put some of that worry at ease.

"Cedric," Harry whispered, his eyes squealing in delight.

"Grab your wand and come with me, I found something that you will find _very_ interesting." Harry was giving Cedric a little incentive because Cedric was obviously dressed for bed, but he wanted to hold onto his surprise and see Cedric's expression of shock and awe.

Cedric mumbled something about first years and having too much energy as he followed Harry to the entrance to the common room where Harry had stopped and was facing the wall.

"Well," Cedric motioned with his hand expectantly.

"What is this grand thing that you …"

Cedric never got to finish his statement as his eyes widened in response to the rapidly appearing entrance that had been in their very own common room.

"Tada!" Harry proclaimed softly as he flourished his hands out to the side.

Cedric was practically drooling at the chance to explore something that no one else knew about.

"How did you find this?" He whispered back to Harry excitedly while examining the stone arch with his hands.

Harry appreciated that Cedric had the ability to think about things rationally and asked very astute questions. It was one of the reasons that they got on so well together.

"Well, I was sitting on the couch by the fireplace and I chanced a look at the map because no one else was out. Since practically everyone in the castle is where they are supposed to be, I concentrated on Hufflepuff and realized that we had never gone over our very own common room. I was examining the various dorms and something seemed off about this particular spot."

Harry pulled out the map and showed Cedric just what he was talking about.

"As you can see, this wall appears that it should be back more and then I started to examine it closer. The tiles were slightly off and, for some reason, it reminded me of the entrance to Diagon Alley in the Leaky Cauldron."

Cedric nodded his head, indicating that he was now following Harry to the logical conclusion that he must have come up with to start tapping the wall with his wand.

"And then I guess I got lucky and it opened. You just have to tap your wand here to close it again."

Harry demonstrated and then told Cedric to try opening it himself.

Once it was clear that they both could open and close it, they had both wanted to make sure trying one other thing out before venturing in.

After Harry had confirmed that it could be opened from the inside – so that they wouldn't be trapped in there – he turned to Cedric and asked if he was up for an adventure.

Cedric nodded his head vigorously.

"Of course! Who knows where this will lead too, but I can't wait to find out. And it is good thing that I can sleep on the train tomorrow."

Harry nodded his head in agreement and brought his wand up in front of him. Kaa stuck his head out slightly and licked the air, trying to discern if anything was amiss about what they were about to do.

" _Smells clear to me, it doesn't seem to have been opened in years. The air is very stale_." Kaa slithered under Harry's clothes and wrapped loosely around his neck so that he could see everything as they went. He would be on guard just in case.

Harry quickly relayed what Kaa had said to Cedric and he brandished his wand in front of him.

"Lumos," they whispered in tandem.

With a last look at each other, Cedric took the lead down the narrow circular stairs and Harry followed him, pausing briefly to seal the entrance behind them.

Harry was studying the map as they went along to get a sense of the direction that they were headed in.

A couple of times he had been so focused on reading the map that he nearly tripped into Cedric because the floor was slightly uneven after what appeared to be centuries of use and then nothing for hundreds of years. From Hufflepuff's common room, they had only descended about a floor before continuing along underneath the hallway that separated the kitchen from their dorms. It was slightly disconcerting seeing where they appeared on the map as they went along and new passageways were revealed, but at the same time it produced a sensation of anticipation as Harry tried to guess where they were going the farther that they went along.

They finally reached a set of ascending stairs that were very much like the ones used to access the Headmaster's office, only much, much narrower. At this point, Harry commented that they were underneath the infirmary, which was on the opposite side of the castle as the entrance. When Hogwarts had been constructed the infirmary was built atop a stone mound that jutted out of the ground around fifty feet. Harry would have guessed that they were about two floors underneath the single floor of the infirmary, which would have placed them squarely in the middle of the stone mound.

They exited the narrow confines of the staircase and were in a room as large as the space above them. Cedric chanced a little bit more light in order to better see the area around them.

"Lumos maxima," he called out in a steady voice that bathed everything in artificial light.

Harry and Cedric just stood there looking at a very dirty but extraordinary room. Behind them, there were three more tunnels than the one they had exited from, and upon closer inspection it became apparent that they must lead to the other common rooms. For above each entrance, or exit depending on how you looked at it, was the animal associated with each house.

But that was hardly the most exciting thing that they found within this new chamber. Rusted swords and ancient axes with huge blades were hung neatly across each wall. There were also windows that looked out across the back of the castle and surrounding hills. Cedric reasoned that the windows must be enchanted or constructed in some way as to not be noticeable from the outside, or else this place would have been rediscovered long ago. Students and teachers frequently walked around this part of the castle's grounds during the warmer months and would surely have noticed.

Along with the weapons had been a chest that had been filled with spare wands and a cabinet that contained very old potions and was quickly shut due to the weird odor that it gave off.

Cedric smartly performed the Febreeze Charm and they moved on to the bookcase.

Harry was completely overwhelmed with what was in front of him. Old tomes that were positively ancient were just up for grabs and he had to refrain from squirreling them away. It would have been all to easy for him to run back and retrieve his pouch that had a featherweight and expandable charm on them to take them and add them to his growing library collection.

But he resisted the urge, reasoning that they would be fine here for the moment since the entire room was basically unknown.

They spent a little while reviewing some of the texts and quickly discovered that most of them were written in very old English or Latin and they would have to brush up on the translations. The books seemed to focus on healing and casting defensive and offensive charms based on the very crude figures that accompanied the text.

Looking around the room for a minute and thinking about where they were and just what the room contained, Harry suddenly understood what this space could have been used for: a retreat and defensive position in case Hogwarts was under attack. It made perfect sense, and not just because of the weapons and books and possibly old healing potions. It was directly under the infirmary and therefore could easily protect it if all of the other defenses had fallen and remain hidden from attackers.

This set Harry's mind into a furious overdrive; if it was a battle center, then Hogwarts at some point had been attacked or was built with that in mind. He thought back through all of the history classes that he had taken that involved the time around 1000AD, and what stood out the most were the various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms that had existed around that time. Wars and conquests occurred daily as the various tribes fought for dominance. It would have been prudent during any construction of a castle to have contingency plans; especially if it was going to be a place of learning and house children and young adults.

'That must be why the tunnels connect each common room here,' Harry thought suddenly. It provided a direct route in case something happened. He wondered what had caused it to be forgotten, but it had been so long ago that it really didn't matter. Some people couldn't remember what they had for dinner when they woke up the next day.

Cedric's musings brought Harry out of his head.

"Do you wonder if there is a way out of here? Or something that connects to the infirmary? It just seems that if this could have been used to evacuate the students out of the castle, then it reasons that there is a way to get outside from here – or on second thought to the infirmary above."

Harry was slightly stunned because these were the same questions that he had been leading to. But he shouldn't have been surprised at all because they were very reasonable conclusions that most rational people would arrive at.

"I was wondering about that." Harry remarked as he began searching the walls for anything obvious.

Cedric was doing the same but had started on the opposing wall as Harry did. Harry was using the map to try and see if anything indicated a reasonable passage up to the infirmary while Cedric was busy finding a way to the outdoors.

Harry ended up besides the potion cabinet that he had left closed and was studying a particular spot that was under what he thought made the most sense as a suspicious area in the infirmary above him. There was an unused square that he would guess to be four feet by four feet and would have made a perfect fit for the circular stairs that they had accessed this room with.

Harry looked down at the floor beneath him for any sign that indicated stairs had once been here. He wasn't about to disregard the possibility that they had sealed it up at some point in the past. It would help to explain how this had gone undiscovered for so long. Kaa was even trying to sniff something out.

"Harry!" Cedric called out quickly.

Harry turned and caught sight of Cedric standing next to one of the windows and pointing to a strange series of symbols. Harry moved closer to get a better look and recognized that they were runes from some of the books he had bought in Flourish and Blotts with Minnie. He couldn't understand them though, and Cedric couldn't either – even though he was actually taking Ancient Runes.

"So far we have only began the theory and how to identify individual runes, we don't begin combining them until fourth year. And I don't even recognize these – they are familiar though."

Cedric pondered the etchings for a few more minutes before deciding it would be better to copy them down so that he could reference them later. The problem was that neither had brought parchment or anything to write with.

"I'll come back tomorrow and copy it and send it to you over the holidays. It is probably too late to go get something and come back."

Cedric nodded at the idea of Harry sending it to him, and acknowledged that it was far too late to retrieve a parchment and quill at this hour.

"Yeah, it is a bit late to do that now. Speaking of late, we really should get going. It is going to be hard getting up for breakfast and then leaving right after. Guess I will be sleeping for a good while on the train. It'll be worth it though."

Harry did feel a little guilty at the hour that they finally returned to their common room; Cedric would be lucky to get a few hours of sleep before his day started. Harry, on the other hand, could sleep after breakfast or miss it entirely because he could always get something from the kitchens when the other students had left. But he could survive on a few hours of sleep before it caught up with him.

But Cedric didn't care about a few missed hours of sleep after discovering that and let Harry know to wake him for any and all future exploratory operations. Eventually they parted ways and wished that the other enjoyed their holidays and time at home.

Harry smiled, very happy with how the entire evening had gone and with what they had discovered.

They both were exhausted and fell asleep seconds after their heads hit their pillow.

* * *

After what had seemed like only second of being asleep, but in reality was a few hours, it was time for them to head to breakfast where those leaving Hogwarts for the holidays would head to Hogsmead Station afterwards. Harry decided to join them for breakfast since he wanted to see his friends before they left one last time. He couldn't be happier with the people in his life now and their friendship really meant a lot to him. In what seemed like such a short time, Harry had gone from relying mostly on himself, though not feeling incomplete, to discovering a group of individuals that he got along very well with.

Hermione had hugged him fiercely before joining Neville, Susan, and Hannah on their way to The Hogwarts Express. Harry saw his first year group of friends off and remained in the courtyard until the majority of the other students had passed. Cedric had been one of the last to leave.

Cedric patted Harry on the back before taking off and reminding him to send him the runes over break.

"See ya, Cedric. I'll make sure to send it!" Harry called out after him.

"Take care, mate. I wonder what else this castle has hidden" he replied to him quietly.

'Yes, what else is hidden from us,' Harry thought as he watched one of the people he felt most comfortable around catch up with his friends and march towards Hogsmead.

They had gotten so used to each other that neither of them even noticed the tingles or sparks anymore when they came in close contact. And it had been easier for Harry to keep his attraction towards Cedric in check as their platonic relationship progressed. He didn't want it to get in the way of what they did have. Harry knew that some of what he was feeling was innate and there was no way to prevent his body from having the various chemical interactions dictated by human biology– but he could and would control how he reacted to them.

Cedric was a great person to have in his life and to go from the Dursleys to having this plethora of amazing individuals in his life, well, Harry was very thankful. He couldn't properly describe the feeling that being loved and taken care of meant to him. In a weird way, he felt quite lucky to be Harry Potter.

Sure, he had lost his parents and had spent the majority of his formative years alone, but he had persevered and it forced him to become more mature and able to handle everything that he had faced since joining the wizarding world. It was hard to watch his friends go off without him but that was only because they meant so much to him. And he had a home now, a place where it truly felt right to call someplace home. The fact that he was feeling sad just provided another example of how his life had changed for the better. It was a good problem to have.

When the last of students disappeared from his view and had moved past the bridge and behind the hill, he turned and headed towards his common room. He would have to grab some parchment and a pen – because he was not bringing a quill and ink well with him – and he headed through the secret passage. He had been fortunate that the one or two Hufflepuffs that remained in the castle were in their rooms for the moment, and he didn't even want to think how difficult all of this would have been if he didn't have his map that told him where everyone was.

Harry had cast some blue bell fireballs that danced along the passage ahead of him, making it much easier to traverse the narrow corridor this time around. Kaa had preferred to slither there on his own this time along the floor in front on Harry. The cool stone was no longer an issue after Harry had discovered a warming charm that could be placed on the snake itself, though Kaa preferred to remain with Harry in most situations because of their mind link.

The trip was much quicker this time and Harry soon found himself in that expansive chamber and had quickly inscribed the rune combination with him. He had also pilfered several of the books – okay, all of them – into his pouch so that he could take them with him. He would have to show Cedric his library trunk at some point, but securing these books was important to Harry. He had thought about bringing Remus in on this discovery, and would do so eventually, but he kind of liked having something that was just for Cedric and him for the time being.

Harry searched for some time for any passage that led outside or to the infirmary but gave up and decided that it was time to put his cloak to good use and try to explore some more of the castle. He had thought briefly about taking the passageways to the other common rooms but each of them had students present and he didn't want to risk being noticed entering or exiting the secret tunnel. Besides, it was the perfect time for him to explore areas of the castle that were hard while students were around and Remus had indicated that it would most likely be early evening before they got out of there so he had plenty of time.

Harry placed his bag of books in his trunk and figured he would start near some of the other common rooms, Slytherin was first on his list because it was in the dungeons on the other side of the castle and no one but a Slytherin ever had a reason to frequent that part of the castle.

Harry made his way there, while practicing making silent steps, under his cloak and with his map focused on the region he was exploring. He had thought that this would be a prime location for the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets since it was Salazar who had created it, but a few hours into his search had left Harry empty-handed. He did notice that there were troves of unused classrooms and little nooks and crannies that were perfect for one or two students to hide. And Harry had noticed some of these being used when two older students wanted some 'alone' time during the night. Not all of them had been heterosexual couples either, which intrigued Harry greatly and made him feel more normal.

Next, Harry tried for Gryffindor Tower and this had taken up the rest of his day because it was one of the largest towers and many floors were involved. Again, anything of note eluded him and he was slightly disappointed by the time he had went to his room when it was close to the time Remus had indicated he would come and fetch him. He spent the last few minutes getting his things in order when Remus had knocked on the door. A few slashes and prods of his wand and his trunks were easily managed into briefcase form and most everything that Harry owned was taken with him.

There was an easiness to their conversation as they made their way towards Remus' office where they would be flooing back to Grimmauld Place, his home, and to Sirius.

Harry would have preferred more time to explore the castle in the open and easily accessible state that it was in now, but all thoughts quickly exited his mind when he stepped out of the fireplace. He had been getting better at controlling his landing coming out and didn't stumble anymore.

For a moment, he had wondered if they had gotten out at the wrong stop because the entire place was decorated festively for Christmas. There were trees and wreaths nearly in every corner that were tastefully and beautifully adorned with little glowing balls of almost every color that he had names for. And the smell of pine lingered in the air but it wasn't overpowering. There was enchanted snow that fell from the top of the main stairwell past several floors before finally dissipating before hitting the marble floor of the foyer. Presents were placed underneath the large Christmas tree that was past the main entryway and spanned at least two stories. The staircase seemed to frame it and the entire thing was something that he would never forget and everything that he imagined Christmas to be and more. Even Remus was awestruck at the change. Sirius was grinning madly at them from where he stood by the second-floor banister.

"Do you like it? Remus said you always liked Christmas trees and lights and I wanted to make our first holiday together perfect."

Harry couldn't really speak; he was overwhelmed with sheer joy and the fact that Sirius had created all of this just for him.

He dropped his belonging at his side and ran into his arms.

"It's wonderful, Sirius. Thank you – it's … it's indescribable. How did you do all of this?"

He slowly removed himself from Sirius' embrace and gazed into eyes that were shinning contently with just a pinch or proud satisfaction.

"Well, I can't take all of the credit."

"As if you have never done that before," Remus retorted as he set down his belongings and came over to the pair. His eyes were also taking in his surroundings and he smiled at how Sirius really had gone all out for their first Christmas as a family.

"Now, now, Moony. I was young in those days, and mostly joking."

He winked at Remus and then turned his attention back to Harry. Setting all of this up had given Sirius something to focus on while he was home and each day he had assigned himself more tasks. He was slowly becoming able to deal with more and more things and he had wanted to show Harry just how much he meant to him.

"Kreacher helped me with a lot of it. I told him what I wanted and he helped me get the trees and then used some of his own magic to place these multicolored lights everywhere."

He pointed around to where they hovered just above the pines that they illuminated. "But for the snow," Sirius gestured to the open space created by the spiraling staircase, "that was because of Lily."

"Ahhhh," Remus sighed

"I forgot about that – it had been the first and only Christmas you had with them, Harry - Lily wanted to make it special for you."

"She was so talented with charms and could do the most amazing things."

Harry liked it even more that his mum had inspired part of the decorations. This was already the best holiday he could ever remember having.

"How about dinner, you guys must be starving?"

They all followed Sirius' lead to the dining area where Kreacher had just finished placing the last dish for the evening. He had prepared a nice roast in honor of 'Master Harry' being back.

"Hello Kreacher – spectacular job with the lights! And the food smells great."

As usual, any compliment produced a goofy grin on the elf and he was overcome with pride for serving his house so well.

"Kreacher lives to serve, Harry. Kreacher has been enjoying the time with Lord Black-"

Sirius made a face, to which Remus lightly slapped his arm.

"- and getting the house in shape for your arrival."

Harry didn't notice the exchange between his parental figures as his attention was focused on the elf.

They finally sat down to a fabulous meal that made it difficult to leave the table, because they had eaten more than their fill. But they didn't have anywhere else to be and they enjoyed the leisurely feel of their surroundings and took generous sips of their stouts, for the men, and butterbeer for Harry. Since it was the holidays, Remus had felt it appropriate to allow Harry a second butterbeer. Which combined with all that he had eaten and that it had been over several hours had hardly affected him besides making him slightly drousy.

It was common for children in the wizarding world to drink small glasses of alcohol here or there from an early age. They were raised around it and so it never became an addiction for most. Well that and it was very difficult for a wizard to get properly drunk as it took a very large amount of alcohol to outpace their own magic breaking it down. This was one of the reasons that wizards were hardly ill, but when they were it was usually very serious since only the most magical and dangerous diseases ever caused lasting harm. Magic would flow through the body and constantly remove threats that it found to its host if it could.

Besides, there were various potions that were much more entertaining and used for recreational purposes that could alter one's body and mind for a short time. Those were very popular and could be quite addicting and an alcoholic drink would never be able to compare to that.

When the last lights of Grimmauld Place were turned off in the early hours of the morning when Remus and Sirius had gone to their separate bedrooms, there was only the illumination provided by the snow falling around the Christmas lights. It was very tranquil and the most beautiful thing that Harry had ever seen when he got up during the night to pee and get a glass of water. So enchanted he was by the ethereal splendor that Sirius and Remus had found him curled up in a blanket underneath the Christmas tree in the foyer.

It soon became an every night occurrence and they would all just camp out at the foot of the tree underneath the snowy sky. Blankets and bedding had been brought down and they spent as much time being cozy and enjoying each other's company as possible.

* * *

When Boxing Day had finally arrived, Harry was nearly bouncing off of the walls in anticipation. He couldn't wait until Sirius and Remus opened their presents from him, but that would be later in the day when Minerva would be coming over to join them all. Severus had also been invited but had declined; more time was needed to mend some of his past grievances. Minerva on the other hand had readily accepted Remus' invitation to celebrate Harry's first Christmas. She had preferred a solitary life and had never 'settled down' and had a family. Minnie was of the opinion that there were worst things than being alone and was content in the life that she lived.

Harry had gone out of his mind just a little with his all of his gifts this year. And it wasn't just the ones that he had gotten the adults. He had spoiled his friends rotten and really wanted to show them just how special they were to him. And since he had the money – and he knew deep down he would never spend it all in his life – he had decided to splurge a little. Although some gifts hadn't cost him a thing, they were still worth quite a lot.

To Neville, he had sent over a very rare book from the Black Library on Elemental Herbology. This art focused more on the magic you could perform without a wand and had been developed over thousands of years to allow a witch or wizard to infuse some of their own magic into cultivating a variety of different flowering plants, herbs, and fungi. It would take years for someone to master, but he thought it suited Neville quite well and it would get more use out of in Neville's hand than sitting on this dusty bookshelf. Books were meant to used, after all!

For Hermione he had sent several books that focused on wizarding laws and history, with special emphasis on customs and muggle relations. These were from a combination of sources that included the Black Library and various bookstores that he had found that existed besides Flourish and Blotts. He had reached out to Remus and was directed to French and German business from which he owl-ordered books that focused on more than just British History. He expected to hear Hermione's squeal of delight at any time, and thoroughly expected to be hugged tightly when he saw her again. He completely understood her love of books and he didn't even hesitate to give her something if he could.

To Hannah and Susan he had given them matching scarves that were black with gold trim. They had been complaining about the draft in the castle and Harry found it a practical gift.

His final gift to his friends could definitely be considered a splurge, but he couldn't help himself from purchasing it. Sure, a Nimbus 2000 would set him back a few hundred galleons, but he could afford it easily from his trust account. He had even sent it anonymously because he knew that Cedric would try and return it, but he wanted him to have it. It would make Cedric happy and give Hufflepuff a better chance against Gryffindor and Slytherin. So it was a practical gift too. He just wished he could have seen Cedric's face light up when he opened it; Harry enjoyed making other people smile, especially Cedric. His smile was something special.

Harry joined Sirius and Remus for a light breakfast since Minnie would be coming over in the afternoon for a sumptuous meal and then they would open presents. Harry had insisted that he help Kreacher in the kitchen because he had an idea for dessert; it was one of his favorite things to help Petunia with around the holidays and he had spent the day making cookies. Kreacher helped use his magic to make interesting shapes that just couldn't exist in the muggle world. For instance, they had made tree shaped cookies that actually sparkled in several different colors and had a yellow star at the top that adjusted its luminescence periodically. Testing the limits with what was possible with magical cookies was quite possibly the most fun that Harry, or anyone for that matter, had ever had in a kitchen.

Minerva arrived later in the afternoon and was quite taken aback by all of the decorations. Minerva was enamored by the biscuits that Harry had made and spent quite a length of time pestering Kreacher about his method of enchantment. She was particularly impressed by the ever-changing face on the snowmen that ran through the gamut of human emotion.

They all sat down to a splendid meal and took their time before starting with presents. Remus and Sirius had wanted Harry to savor the entire the entire day and were spreading things out as much as possible.

"Minnie, I want you to open this one first," Harry had a slip of the tongue.

Sirius' face was priceless and he was waiting with baited breath to see old McGonagall's reaction. Remus was also watching the scene unfold with mild amusement – he had figured that Harry would slip eventually and at least this was only in front of Sirius. Though, he didn't know whether the fact that it was Sirius made the situation better or worse.

Harry realized what he had done when Minerva's countenance showed a mild annoyance but that was nothing serious.

"Harry, I thought we had come to an understanding with that name?" She raised her eyebrows pointedly. She was going to try and at least give Harry a shock or two in payback for all of the moments she had to witness involving Harry and wasn't going to make this easy on him.

Harry had been prepared for an eventual slip of the tongue and had the perfect excuse waiting. He was a sly devil when he wanted to be.

"Aunt Minnie, I know you said that I could only call you that in private," Harry started sheepishly.

"But I am just so comfortable around all of you and in one way or another you are all either a guardian or a godparent." Harry gestured around and had the most innocent facial expression that portrayed a perfect angelic face.

"And… you're my family and it really is a term of endearment."

Minerva's eyes began to well up even though she knew that Harry had merely said those things for the effect that they would have. Though, she didn't doubt that they were true; they had just been embellished to perfection. All parents were susceptible to this form of guile the first time around.

Sirius was mentally commending Harry's performance. He was James' son through and through.

"Very well," Minerva sighed, wiping away wetness that lingered under her eyes.

Harry smiled with pure glee and handed her his present before becoming less fawning in his show of true and honest gratitude.

"I am very glad for everything that you have done and wanted to find a way to say thank you for showing me the ropes, so to speak. I don't know how I could have gone through everything during those first few days if you hadn't been there. Happy Christmas, Aunt Minnie."

And this was why Minerva wasn't really upset at Harry calling her Minnie: she was enamored with the boy's genuineness and loved him like he was her own.

Even Sirius had to wipe at his eyes, though he would have swore that he had something in his eyes.

Remus had been touched when Harry had approached him with the idea of the gift and had helped him acquire the necessary paperwork. Even though Minerva had already agreed and signed the paperwork that had made up a guardian, Harry's gift was more sentimental and 'final' in nature.

It was a simple box that held a copy of the signed paperwork that had since become official as well as a very sweet Hallmark card with a picture of a Lily flower on it with a short inscription on the inside.

 ** _Mothers hold their children's hand for a short while, but their hearts forever._**

 _Minnie,_

 _I know that no one can ever replace my mum, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for someone else or that she wouldn't want someone to step in. As I said before, I am very happy with you being my 'Aunt Minnie,' and very glad that you are in my life and someone that I can turn to. I don't think I can properly ever explain what that feeling means._

 _Your 'nephew,'_

 _Harry_

It took a few moments for Minerva to come to her senses. She couldn't really describe what she was feeling and didn't know that she should even try. She had been content in enjoying a single life and pursuing her love of transfiguration – she never sought out marriage or starting a family and preferred to let things go as they may in her life. One of her mottos in life had been, 'if you are not enough without it, you will never be enough with it."

But just because she hadn't gone looking for a family didn't mean that she wouldn't accept being a part of one should the opportunity arise. And boy did one ever present itself.

The hug that Minerva gave Harry in response to his gift necessitated hugs all around. Looking back, it was a moment that really defined their little family unit as coming together for the first time and recognizing that the most important thing going forward to them was the safety and happiness of Harry.

A little break was given as refreshments and more of Harrys and Kreacher's cookies were brought out. There was butterbeer aplenty for Harry and even some aged port for the adults to wet their tongues with.

When the gift giving resumed, it was Minerva's turn to give Harry her gift.

"Here, Harry. I think you will enjoy this." Minerva sat back and looked on as Harry tore open the wrapping paper to reveal a book that contained her notes on various aspects of Transfiguration.

"Now, I know this could be seen as being quite unfair if other students were to find out about this, but I am hoping that you can be a little discreet with this?"

She waited for Harry to nod his head. He hadn't looked up at Minnie while assenting to her comment of understanding because he was too engrossed with flipping through the various pages. This was worth more than gold; knowledge from experience was priceless.

Harry had also received a lot of books that day from Remus and Sirius. Of course, he was given more books on continuing his Occlumency and had been working briefly with Walburga for the next stage in his training. After starting therapy with Will, he had been making very steady progress and had really gotten the hang of organizing his mind in an efficient way. The majority of his time was now spent finishing sorting of his past memories, and once this was done he could really begin coming up with creating effective defensive barriers.

Sirius had also given Harry the mirrors that he had used to communicate with James while in separate detentions. Harry liked the idea of being able to speak with Sirius whenever he wanted to and knew that it would be good for the both of them to further develop their relationship.

Remus hadn't known what to get Harry. He struggled with deciding on an appropriate gift that fully conveyed his appreciation for Harry wanting him in his life with his desire as a guardian to spoil him. He had simply decided on indulging Harry's interest in books, but had pulled him aside when Sirius and Minerva had went to go freshen up at one point during the evening's festivities.

"Harry, I just wanted to make you are aware – and I know that you are – that you can come to me with anything. Or Sirius, for that matter. And Minnie too I guess," He smirked at that.

"We are here for anything that you may be curious about or dealing with. I just want you to know that no matter what you are going through, we are here for you. And we will never stop loving you for anything."

Remus wanted Harry to know that he didn't have to worry about hiding who he was from him, and sometimes people needed to hear that from time to time. Because hearing that someone will unconditionally be there for you really does help allay some of the fears that they could stop loving you for being who you are on the inside.

"Thanks, Remus. I know that you guys are there. I'm still getting used to the idea of having people in my life that I know are looking out for me at all time. Sometimes I forget that and it helps to be reminded."

Remus pulled him into a hug and kissed his temple.

"You are our pup, Harry. Forever."

Sirius and Minerva waited silently for the moment to be over by the stairs because they didn't want to disturb the obvious bonding that was happening. That didn't stop Sirius from commenting on the situation, however.

"Did you ever feel like you woke up one day and discovered that you more or less had a child to take care of and found yourself loving him with all of your heart?"

There were too many ways for Minerva to answer that and she suspected that it was more Sirius talking out loud than asking her a direct question. She opted for a simple response nonetheless.

"Every now and then."

Sirius smiled at her response and then decided to ask her thoughts on how her life had managed to become entangled with his the way it had.

"Did you ever think you would be here, helping to raise a child with Remus and myself?"

Minnie had to hold in her snort so as not to alert Harry and Remus to their presence.

She turned to Sirius and gave a brief upturn to her lips.

"When it involves a Potter, I have come to have no expectations on the situations that may or may not result."

"I would expect nothing less," Sirius smiled, attempting to reconcile how his own life had managed to become intricately bound to the teacher who had attempted to thwart some of his most hair-brained schemes.

Eventually, they all settled around the tree again and Harry gave out his final presents to Sirius and Remus.

To Sirius, he repaid every galleon that he had taken from his account. It had only been a few thousand galleons and Sirius had attempted to protest but Harry just held up his hand.

"It's also to apologize somewhat for being so angry with you… well, before I knew that it was Pettigrew. I know it's not something that is expected of me to apologize for but it was hard for me to go from hating you so much for what I thought you had done to, well everything that is now changed. But I felt it important to recognize – Will has helped me a lot with making peace for how I felt – and, more importantly, I wanted to."

Sirius could only nod and mentally earmarked the money that Harry had given him to Harry's future presents.

Remus had received something similar to what Minerva had received – though Harry had signed it 'son.' It felt right and that was how Harry had come to see himself more and more as time had passed in Remus' presence. He really felt a paternal relationship with the man and wanted to acknowledge Remus' importance. Really, Harry was the most happy that he had ever been because he had a family now, and finally felt at peace with his parents now. He didn't even doubt that they would have objected to the situation; everything had just come together naturally.

Minerva had a little trouble in leaving that night; it was hard to part after such strong bonds had been forged. Ultimately, she had accepted Harry's request to join them for a sleepover and another mattress popped into existence under the tree. It was late into the night when the noise quieted and the only sound that could be heard was the rhythmic breathing of the family in Grimmauld Place.

* * *

Miles away in a lonely setting in Spinner's End, a dark haired man stood staring silently at the unwrapped gifts before him with a half-drunk glass of fire whiskey forgotten in front of him. He had a letter in his hands that he had been clutching for some hours now, as he was lost in thought and contemplating how everything in his life had led him to this particular moment.

Eventually he picked up the locket that Regulus had retrieved and placed it around his neck before heading to bed. He placed the letter on the table face up.

The last vestiges of moonlight that came in through the kitchen window illuminated the elegant and heartfelt script.

 _Professor Snape,_

 _I talked with Kreacher and we both feel like you should have this. I know we can never understand what Regulus meant to you, but if anyone deserves to have this, it's you. We will defeat him, professor – Voldemort will pay for what he has done and the lives he has destroyed._

 _Finally, I don't know how to tell you this so I'm just going to do it. My parents left me letters in my vault at Gringotts and they were charmed to reveal more and more of what they wrote to me over time. My mum wanted me to let you know that she forgives you. She didn't elaborate on what had happened between you two but regrets that you guys never made up because of things that were happening in the world. She said she knows that everyone does things that they regret and that you are a good man; she wished she could have understood more about what you were going through at that time. Her message was not to let one stupid moment get in the way of people that you love. She also wanted me to let you know that my dad was sorry as well for things that he did. Again, I am just relaying a message and don't care or know about the events that transpired between you guys._

 _I hope you have a Happy Christmas, Professor. I hope you know how much I enjoy your class and hope you can find a use for some of Kaa's skin in something. If nothing currently exists, I'm sure you will invent something._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Harry Potter_

 **Let me know what you think! And thanks for reading :)**


	21. Christmas at Malfoy Manor

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, really having trouble finding the time to write/edit this. I traveled most of the summer for work and it hasn't slowed down. Will get to this when I can though.

I have a really firm idea of what I want to do with the Malfoys. This chapter surprisingly wrote itself – and though some may doubt what Lucius does – I think that being with the Dark Lord has broken him somewhat and has altered some of the choices that he makes. I think his decision making process is skewed, and this reflects that somewhat.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; the entire world belongs to JK.**

* * *

If there was one thing that Draco Malfoy liked the most about being at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry it was having his own private room. For the first time in his short life, he knew the sweet, sweet freedom of being able to not wear any masks and he was enjoying his limited opportunity in exploring just who Draco Malfoy _really_ was. At first, he hadn't known how to act when he looked in the mirror the first few times in complete privacy; he had spent so much of his life under the watchful eye of his father that he had never been able to truly let his guard down at home.

This was an entirely new experience.

Back home at Malfoy Manor, if he wasn't concerned that his father would catch him at a moment of weakness, he was worried about the house elves and their strict orders to report anything and everything to the elder Malfoy.

And the current elves knew what fate awaited them should their service ever displease their master. What happened to Dobby's mother stood as a chilling reminder of just the sort of person that they were bound to – and if her tragic death hadn't been enough, well, watching Dobby bury her while being ordered to say how much of a disgrace she was to the Malfoy name certainly drove the point home.

In time the house elves became fanatically loyal servants, while at the same time being utterly petrified and too scared to put even one toe out of line.

For Lucius Malfoy was a man who had been the Dark Lord's second at the time of his downfall and needed to ensure that those serving his house were trustworthy and faithful in their enslavement to him. He could ill-afford having someone privy to his secrets not be anything but directly under his thumb, even when he was one hundred miles away.

Draco tried to distance those thoughts from his mind now as he was currently lying on his back and looking up at the ceiling with his hands cushioned underneath of his head.

He was relishing the feeling of being barefoot and wiggling his toes despite the chill of the dungeons because a Malfoy was expected to _always_ look the part and even his pajamas at home were overly formal. Draco had taken to rebel against his upbringing in the safest and only way he could at the moment, and he was well aware of how pathetic it was. But he would take what he could get and savor the small victories in his otherwise oppressed existence.

In some ways, he had been relieved that he was under orders to approach and befriend the Potter scion after those demeaning and libel words had appeared in the Daily Prophet had altered the standing of his family. It had afforded him the opportunity to be closer to his truer self in public than he otherwise would have been had his only other form of public interaction had been his acquaintances in Slytherin. The snake pit was hardly the place for true friendships to form because everyone was too busy in not letting the surrounding sharks smell a drop of blood. Most of these children had been raised since birth to be perfect pureblood heirs and heiresses, and a means to showcase just how respectable their families were. Sure, there were some people that you could get along with amicably and feel a reasonable amount of safety around, but everyone always kept one eye open and a hand securely on their wand.

It would be foolish to do otherwise.

The only place where Draco, and likely everyone else in Slytherin, could truly let his or her guard down was in their own private room. Thus, their common room tended to empty earlier than in the other houses as they needed to have at least some personal time in which to stop their charade and center themselves in order to do it all over again the next day. Very bad things tended to happen to those individuals who showed visible cracks in public; it was not something that most could afford to have happen to them. It wouldn't just be their peers within school that would make their lives extremely difficult; their families would most likely punish them for tarnishing family honor and pride as well.

This year in Slytherin, the power dynamics had changed slightly with the arrival of Harry Potter. On one hand, you had to appear in line with the prevailing public support that he was special, and had saved the wizarding world from Voldemort. But on the other, one couldn't afford to be too sympathetic with the other side that tended to align itself too closely to mudbloods and other distasteful associations. They were Slytherins and, as such, valued blood purity and would stop at nothing to achieve their goals. They viewed themselves as superior to other witches or wizards and some of them were forced to walk a very fine line now. It was easier for some than for others in more precarious situations.

Draco Malfoy was certainly one who was constantly walking on the edge, and he tended to retire early in the evening to make his plans accordingly. As the year had progressed, and his study sessions with Harry had continued, he had had to become a master politician in interacting with the Longbottom Heir and a mudblood while not losing his standing within Slytherin. And with the task and training his father had given him over the winter holidays, well, his path that he needed to walk became even more precarious.

On this particular Saturday evening in February, Draco had retired to his room immediately after dinner. He had claimed homework and needing to update his father on certain matters. The only reason he could chance spending more time by himself was that today had been a quidditch match in which he had to 'be on' more than usual, what with classes offering a slight reprieve since education was paramount to a Slytherin. People could be afforded a certain breathing room in this regard during the week.

It certainly had been an interesting afternoon with Hufflepuff barely managing to scrap a win again Gryffindor despite being severely outplayed. That Cedric Diggory would be a thorn in the side of Slytherin's chances at keeping the quidditch cup if he continued to save his team with his astounding ability on a broom. The fact that he had gotten his hands on a Nimbus two thousand had been quite the story when everyone had returned to the castle from their holiday. Cedric had said the broom had come to him anonymously, and it had led to a myriad of rumors over just whom this mysterious benefactor of his was.

Draco thought that some of these guesses that had quietly made their way around the Hogwarts' rumor mill behind Cedric's back were quite intriguing. Some had stood steadfast in their belief that Cedric's father had nearly bankrupted the family in order to improve their standing among the other houses, as if to say, 'see, we have gold.' Being a star quidditch player could open up doors to a future that Cedric wouldn't otherwise have been entitled to. Another popular conspiracy was that Hufflepuff as a house had ponied up the money themselves; but that was more ridiculous than the first one had been. At least Slytherin House could see the value, but perhaps not the risk of being destitute, of a parent trying to improve their child's standing any way they could. That was what Slytherin was really all about, anyways.

But Draco didn't believe either of them, nor had he believed that Sprout had come up with the galleons herself because that would have been blatant favoritism and something very against Helga's legacy. No, Draco knew exactly who had bought the broom for Cedric and was a bit surprised that no one else had seemed to arrive to the same conclusion that he had, but he surmised that they could also be keeping it to themselves. It was a ridiculous explanation, but of everything it was also the most likely; especially to someone that read into body language and observed more than normal. And Draco was a master at that; he simply had to be growing up in the house that he did and with all of his extra tutelage under his father's guidance.

It was obvious to Draco that Harry had bought the broom for his friend; just watching them interact was something that he spent a great deal of time doing from the other side of the great hall during meals. Their body language towards one another obviously indicated that each was very comfortable with the other, and since he had rarely seen them interacting outside of the Great Hall – as well as their inability to share classes with each other – the only thing he could think of was that they spent a great deal of time alone together. Whether that was in their common room or elsewhere in the castle was irrelevant to him.

Deep down, perhaps farther than he dared to think even in the safety of his own room in the dungeons, Draco was jealous that they had found whatever sort of friendship or bond that they had. Draco would haven given anything to be able to have a true friend like that. And it wasn't just Cedric that Harry shared his friendship with; he also had Longbottom, Granger, Bones, and Abbott. Those five were often seen together traipsing about the castle or the grounds or studying in some corner of the library. Draco only associated with them in the library – but it was clear that they shared personal and intimate things with each other that were unheard of to a Slytherin.

Draco rolled over onto his side and rubbed tiredly at his eyes. He thought back to the conversation he had had with his father over the holidays, and not for the first time, experienced feelings he associated with dread. It had taken him a long time to be able to think back to those events without shivering in disgust.

For him, the holidays as a whole had been very lackluster compared to years before. Their family had not been invited to the Ministry's Ball this year on account of that nosy bitch, who just had to dig up past dirt and taint their otherwise reputable name. Well, maybe that was too far – their name _was_ associated with the more dark and powerful elites and no one was that naïve to think them _that_ saintly.

Though their name still carried great weight among the darker families, those that were in the public realm had to treat them just like everyone else now did: with suspicion and space. The Minister had barely hung onto his job in the aftermath of the scandals that erupted in September, only his skilled handling of that Sirius fiasco and other misdeeds from past administrations convinced just enough people that he was being effective.

For now.

Still, the Minister's actions were now being closely watched, and he could not afford to be seen being chummy with the Malfoys, who had lost significant political and social clout.

And so Draco had not seen his 'friends' from school or had the opportunity to act like the little pureblood prince that he had been raised as. Instead, he had been lectured night and day from his father on their situation and what their next plan of action would be and how they would climb back to the upper echelons of wizarding society once again.

It was during one of these particular chats on the eve of his return to school that his life had irrevocably changed. It all started when his father had summoned him to his study, and he would remember that night for the rest of his life; it was the first time that he had experienced the Cruciatus Curse.

Just touching upon those memories briefly in his mind caused Draco's body to stiffen as a chill went through him, lingering on those nerve endings that still ached, and from which every now and then would send a painful twinge throughout his body.

He closed his eyes, hoping to fall into a dreamless sleep – but knowing that he was going to relive that night all over again anyways. Because it was the only dream he had had ever since that night and he was resigned to reliving it again...

* * *

 _Draco walked on the plush carpet that existed throughout the manor, ignoring the intricate woodwork on the walls and the vast display of priceless artifacts around him. His stance was elegant and his features aristocratic as he calmed himself before applying his final mask with all of the power and grace that he could muster. He would need all of his cunning and wit now, just as he did every time he was in the presence of his father._

 _Draco knocked confidently on the heavy oak doors that were trimmed in gold and silver filigree and studded with emeralds._

 _"_ _Enter," a firm and strong voice commanded after._

 _With his masks firmly in place, he entered the study that was softly illuminated by the warm glow of the fireplace with various candles and enchanted lanterns placed throughout to provide additional light._

 _Lucius Malfoy was seated behind his desk sipping on a cordial of brandy that he held delicately in one hand, his eyes following his progeny as he made his way across the room to stand before him._

 _'_ _The boy is starting to fill out nicely, and he appears more like me everyday,' the elder statesman thought proudly. It was paying himself a compliment just as much as he was praising how beautiful and stunning Draco was becoming._

 _Blond hair combed perfectly back, just barely long enough to be tied into a piece of black ribbon. His cheeks were high and his nose was small and pointed; the perfect aristocrat if there ever was one. His svelte frame combined with a height that was slightly greater than those of his peers and made him stand out all the more. It was practically unfair for someone to ever look this good, and yet still be from such an illustrious family. And he wasn't the only Malfoy with stunning looks. Lucius was often described as breathtaking, and not just because of rumors that spoke of his ruthlessness with his wand. He was the epitome of gorgeously sinful and his wife, Narcissa, was – if possible - even more so._

 _Draco came to stand patiently and quietly before his father, not sitting until he was instructed to do so._

 _Lucius' eyes looked him up and down one more time before indicating that he should take a seat with a wave of his hand. Tonight Narcissa was out with some of the other wives favorable to their political leanings and it was the perfect opportunity for the discussion and demonstration that needed to happen. For Draco needed to be prepared for what his role would entail when he followed in his footsteps, and he needed to learn that a Malfoy would only ever bow to one person: the Dark Lord._

 _"_ _Draco, I trust that all of your homework is done and that your marks will continue to be satisfactory?"_

 _His voice was intricately laced with a warning that Draco was all too familiar with and gave him some clue as to what this evening would be about. He had learned over the years that serious matters or discussion should always be prefaced with something innocuous; so as to ease the person in front of you and make them more susceptible to what was to follow. A skilled orator would lead someone to a conclusion that was just where they wanted, and be able to extract information without their target knowing that they were unconsciously giving away through their body language or by the words they used._

 _Draco had been learning these skills since the day he was born, just as Lucius had learned from his father, Abraxas._

 _"_ _Of course, father. My tutors prepared me well for Hogwarts."_

 _"_ _Of course," Malfoy senior replied with a satisfied grin._

 _He really was proud that Draco had turned out the way he did, he loved his son more than anything and only wanted what was best for him. And Draco being like he was only made what was to come easier on him, in Lucius' mind. Despite what some may say about Lucius torturing others, he did not relish causing his son any pain. His only recourse was to know that it could be worse if and when the Dark Lord came back._

 _Like something as mundane like death would have stopped the greatest and most terrifying wizard of all time._

 _And this was why Draco had been raised the way he had. Even in his master's absence, in the very depths of his soul, Lucius knew that the man would one day come back. He wasn't an idiot, he knew what he possessed – and the Magic that it contained. And he would never admit just how much that petrified him._

 _Life would have been so much easier had he known that the Dark Lord was truly gone because he was in too deep to do anything about it now –whatever his regrets._

 _"_ _And Slytherin? How is our noble house faring?"_

 _Draco internally sighed. No matter how good he was, no matter how well he played this game, he was up against a master. He wondered what he would unknowingly give away to his father this time. But it was something that he needed to work on, and he had the will power to do so. He took a few seconds to craft his answer before responding._

 _"_ _The snakes are like they always are, father. Everyone is watching everyone else and just waiting for someone to slip up, hoping and praying to Merlin that it won't be them. They change instantly with the latest fad or are sycophantic to those that have just managed to grab the top of the power hierarchy within the house. And some are good and make plans within plans, but sadly, most are sheep and have no capacity to lead."_

 _"_ _And where do you fit into all of this, my son?" His voice indicated that only one answer was expected, and only one would be tolerated._

 _Draco knew it was important to answer this question confidently but not too quickly._

 _He smirked in a way that only a Malfoy could._

 _"_ _You taught me well father; I make plans that let others think that they are calling the shots when I really just have them doing what I wanted in the first place."_

 _"_ _Draco, I expect nothing less," he said with the most amount of seriousness that Draco had ever heard._

 _And it threw him off his game momentarily. His father was playing him perfectly, and had introduced something that only demonstrated that Lucius was head and shoulders above everyone, well almost everyone. Draco decided on a bold approach – he would attempt to get back into this no matter how hopeless it was to match Lucius in his element._

 _"_ _So what is it that you really want to talk to me about tonight? I know you never doubted my performance at school – not with all the outstandings that I receive." Draco didn't even beat an eyelash._

 _And Lucius laughed. Just in this instance, he wanted to reward the brazen comeback. Because he knew Draco would only ever try this with him knowing the type of game that they were playing._

 _"_ _Don't drink this all in one go," he cautioned as he poured Draco a measure of brandy. If they were going to talk like men, then Draco would drink like one._

 _Draco was instantly on guard despite this grand gesture. Tonight was more serious than he had originally thought, and he wasn't sure that he really wanted to know what was going on. It was the first time his father had ever offered him anything other than a butterbeer or the occasional glass of wine at dinner. And the first sip burned his throat when he swallowed, but he refrained from showing any outward grimace._

 _"_ _Now, Draco, how is your task going concerning one, Harry Potter?"_

 _A single eyebrow was raised, expecting to hear only good news – but aware of the difficulties befriending Harry Potter, a Hufflepuff of all things, would have on him. He had to admit that he was curious to see how Draco had managed._

 _Draco relaxed somewhat at this topic of conversation; he felt like he had made good progress, all things considered._

 _"_ _I'm pleased to report that myself, along with Daphne Greengrass and Blaise Zabini, study with Potter and his group in the library every Saturday."_

 _Draco shifted in his chair slightly._

 _"_ _In the beginning, it was difficult going up to him, and I still don't think he fully trusts me. He is smart father, very smart. I think he knows that there may be something else going on – a part of him is always calculating and observing when no one thinks he is looking. But I see it father, and I have had to make sure not to give anything away to his suspicions."_

 _Lucius nodded, he would have to think more about this Harry Potter – intelligence was always something to respect, especially if it was combined with political savvy. Lucius knew all to well what that combination could give you; the opulence of his home was a testament to that. He motioned for Draco to continue._

 _"_ _Slytherin house was a different matter entirely. All I had to do was open their eyes to some of the bigger plans in play and they immediately backed off. Even those that wish to improve upon their standing dared not go against a Malfoy's order, father. Your reputation precedes you in that regards – something I wish for myself in time."_

 _And this was his in: Draco had played into his ploy perfectly. He regretted what was to come, but his own father had made him see the necessity of it once upon a time. Draco had to be prepared for all things to come, and_ prepared _he would be._

 _"_ _Is that so Draco, you wish to follow in my footsteps?" Lucius had a strange glint in his eyes._

 _Draco realized that this may have been what his father had wanted all along – something was coming and he couldn't back out of it now._

 _"_ _Truly father, there is more I need to learn and wish for you to teach me. I am ready for the next part of my education."_

 _A predatory grin appeared on the elder Malfoy. He needed Draco to realize, if he hadn't already, that this was what he wanted all along and that his son still had things to learn from him. For his son's future safety, he would do anything – even if it hurt him now. Even if Lucius regretted it – as long as he imparted some of his knowledge to his son._

 _"_ _Very well. Let's see how you manage with this."_

 _Lucius stood and raised his wand and Draco forced himself with every fiber of his being to remain unmoved and take the pain he suspected was coming._

 _He was so surprised and relieved when the flick of his father's wand revealed a muggle bound in chains in the corner that an unintentional sigh of relief escaped his lips._

 _"_ _Draco, I expect better of you. You will be punished for that."_

 _"_ _Of course, father," Draco said obediently._

 _He still wasn't in complete and total control over his body and his reactions and he desperately needed to be. A bit of doubt and fear began to stir in his stomach at the sight of the shackled man._

 _"_ _But we will get to that later. For now, your task is to make this poor excuse of a muggle – though they are all poor excuses – suffer. The time has come for you to learn the Cruciatus Curse, and you will not leave here until you master it."_

 _And Lucius would go through with all of this because the Dark Lord would not tolerate one of his followers to not be able to perform his most favorite curse. And once Draco learned it, he would learn to be silent and not scream when under it himself. Lucius would not see his son killed or tortured unnecessarily by the Dark Lord for failing to take whatever punishment he doled out in stride. If Lucius couldn't take the curse for his son, this was his only recourse. This was how far the Malfoy family was in, that it didn't even occur to Lucius that there might be another way to protect his family when the time came._

 _Draco remained silent for a moment to collect himself; however, internally, he was terrified and no amount of preparation would change that. He had never tortured anyone before, let alone witnessed it. His father had always made it a point to do his 'business dealings' elsewhere. He downed his brandy in one go and swallowed the burning liquid for courage._

 _Draco eventually joined his father standing over the pleading muggle, who didn't quite fully realize yet that there was no hope for him and that he would not be returning to where he had come from. As soon as he was put through more pain than he had ever experienced, he would be sacrificed and no one would ever find his body._

 _"_ _Draco, the curse is simple: let your magic flow through you and don't concentrate on any wand movement because there really isn't any. The unforgiveables are old curses and very rudimentary; they do not require intricate wand motion to control and direct. Only a desire to cause pain and the will to carry it out with your wand is all that is required here. Saying 'Crucio' is only required in the beginning as you learn to master the form your magic and intentions must take to perform it correctly. After that, it becomes one of the easiest spells to perform silently. The Dark Lord, I suspect, was fond of casting it out loud because of the way the words rolled off of his tongue and the fear it inspired in others. I don't think I have ever seen him so happy as when he was casting this curse. Causing pain and being in control brings him as close to joy as I think he has ever known – but that will stay between us."_

 _He looked seriously at Draco._

 _Draco nodded at that last request; if it weren't for the impossible situation that he was in he would have felt something at being taken into confidence with his father who rarely spoke about the Dark Lord in front of him._

 _"_ _Alright, father. I'm ready."_

 _Draco couldn't focus on anything else. He was barely holding it together and just wanted to get through this and be back at Hogwarts as quickly as he could._

 _For his own comfort, he was willing to take away someone else's._

 _"_ Crucio _," he uttered with his every intent on causing this person pain, but he had a stronger sense of urgency and getting this right. So of course, it failed. But that didn't mean he hadn't caused some pain._

 _The muggle howled, but his limbs remained still. Jerking the limbs was a clear sign that their nerve ends were on fire and that the curse was being performed correctly._

 _"_ _No, Draco. You have to mean it. Like this: Crucio."_

 _And Draco felt like he was being torn apart; every nerve in his body was active, and he no longer felt like smooth tissue made up his body. Someone had replaced everything in his body with knives and glass and it fucking hurt. It was so unexpected, but he bit down hard on his tongue to keep himself from crying out. Showing anything now would only prolong this._

 _And the unimaginable sensation left as quickly as it had come. Draco attempted to push himself off of the floor but found that he couldn't rely on his wobbly limbs and needed several moments until he could stand upright, but he still continued to shake slightly. Draco never wanted to feel that pain again._

 _He felt betrayed, and angry with his father. What good would experiencing that ever do for him? However, he forced his thoughts back to the task in front of him. He took his wand in his hand, directing all of his rage and thoughts at his father while pointing to the muggle on the ground, fueling the spell with everything he could._

 _"_ _Crucio," he practically screamed._

 _And this time, the muggle flopped about, flailing every limb until they bent and snapped at impossible angles. In that moment, Draco was forever lost to his father for turning him into this monster. He would have to carefully bide his time until he could escape, and he only hoped that he remained intact until then. Draco was ashamed at the atrocity that he was committing, but he had no choice in this matter. Refusal would only cause him more pain, and there was nothing he could do to save the life before him._

 _Lucius correctly guessed some of the thoughts that raged about his son's mind, but he had already committed to seeing this through. He needed Draco to realize sooner rather than later what his life would entail if he had any hope or chance to survive. He needed to be strong, and the darkening mark on Lucius' arm had only fueled his actions more._

 _The muggle had snot and blood pouring out of his mouth with the effects of the curse still lingering through a body that was unable to withstand this sort of trauma. He was as good as dead now and would have succumbed in time, but Lucius was merciful and delivered it to him quickly. It would be a while before Draco learned the Avada Kedavra Curse; that would surely break him now._

 _Before Draco left his father's study that night, he was given another spot of brandy as they both sat in silence. Lucius desperately wanted to know what was going through his son's mind, but even if he could read it – he wasn't sure that he would. But it didn't matter; Draco was a master Occlumens. Lucius would not have sent the boy to Hogwarts if he wasn't, too much could have been picked from his mind otherwise._

 _Draco finished his drink and desperately wanted to get out of there. He wasn't foolish enough to leave without being dismissed, however._

 _"_ _Is that all, father?" As if they had been discussing something unimportant and trivial._

 _Lucius nodded his head, and watched Draco incline his head in a show of respect that had been ingrained in his mannerisms towards Lucius and walked towards the door._

 _"_ _Draco, one more thing now that I think about it." Lucius uttered as if he hadn't just performed an unforgivable action._

 _'_ _So, close,' Draco thought. He turned around slowly and met his father's eyes as bravely as he could._

 _"_ _Yes, father?"_

 _"_ _We need to do more to offset some of the suspicion cast on us by Ms. Skeeter, I think having Harry come over this summer will be helpful. Perhaps the both of you can make an appearance at Diagon Alley together? And even his guardians can come along and then we can host them here for a supper; I'm sure Narcissa would love to welcome her cousin back with a proper party and show of public support."_

 _"_ _Of course, father. It would be my pleasure to arrange this."_

 _He nodded and made the journey to his wing of the manor and settled in, desperate to go back to school and let his body fully react to what had just occurred. He would have to hang on that long until he could break down and process what had just occurred._

 _Lucius sat back in his chair by the fire; he had planned on outing Remus as a werewolf when he learned that he had taken custody of the boy – but then that blasted woman had to go and complicate matters, shifting the attention on him. And Sirius had also gotten released and it further made things more difficult. Revealing his status as a werewolf would have made life difficult for him, but there was a chance his popularity and reputation as a wonderful defense teacher would help mitigate any potential fallout. Not to mention that having Harry Potter in your corner was a hard thing to overcome. Now though, the odds of success were hardly in his favor, and he had more important things to work on – and a Malfoy never acted unless they could be sure it played out how they wanted it to._

* * *

Draco waited until he was safely in his bed at Hogwarts to break down. He had cast every silencing charm that he could think of around his room and he let the tears fall unashamedly as the little boy inside of him died, taking away his remaining innocence.

It would take him until February to fully regain his sense of self and he almost had a few slip-ups where his impeccable countenance showed cracks if anyone knew what to specifically look for. He was thankful that the majority of Slytherin weren't up to his level, however, Severus Snape was on par with his father – and had managed to meddle as much as he could to keep suspicion off of the boy until he could handle things by himself again.

It wasn't until the day that Hufflepuff beat Gryffindor that he was completely confident that Draco had things back under control – and he could only wonder what must have happened at the Malfoy Manor over the holidays. He was not going to fail the boy and he would intervene to save Draco should he need it – after all, he was his Godfather.

 **Let me know what you think!**


	22. Ravenclaw vs Slytherin

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading!

Looking back over what I have written so far, I realize that it may have been a little too much touchy feely with how supportive people are currently being (well, except that last chapter); but it won't always be that way. Though, I will say I am trying to be as honest to this subject material as possible. I am trying to put my head in this and be as true to the story line I started and make people act accordingly (and please let me know if something seems out of place – I know I can't get everything right and I may have some incongruities).

Thank you everyone for the comments so far and positive (and constructive) feedback.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; I am so thankful for JKR and all that she did for us. She gave us one of the greatest gifts, and so many people have taken to this site and played brilliantly with her creation. We should have a JKR day and it should be a global holiday!**

* * *

Harry made his way to the quidditch pitch early on Saturday morning for the Ravenclaw versus Slytherin match since he had gotten out of his therapy session with William Abernathy a little earlier than he had expected.

Plus, since it wasn't often that Harry got to enjoy the peaceful quiet of the outdoors, he wanted to make sure that he took advantage of this opportunity before everyone else made their way down.

As Harry arrived at the pitch he was hit with a cold gust of wind, which helped clear some the very poignant realizations that he had come to terms with from his mind. And while he was extremely proud of what he had accomplished over the course of these past few months, he had never truly been aware just how suffocating some of the previous events in his life had been.

Even something as simple as breathing felt like it was easier now, and he had only become aware of it after the fact. He had never known or recognized it for what it was because it has always been there as a consequence of him just doing the best that he could to get by and not fully getting at the root of the problem.

And this wasn't the only change in his life. For it was only recently that Harry had gotten used to the constant presence of having other people around that knew him and that he got along well with. To be honest, Harry was surprised with how easily things had come together after the tumultuous start of his Hogwarts tenure; however, his new friendships and bonds that he had forged with others had been very organic and not at all forced.

Having a better support system had helped him to come to terms with an unknown prophecy and the threat of Voldemort one day returning that loomed on the horizon without even having to speak of it. Well, Remus and Sirius were planning on preparing Harry more for that eventuality – along with Minerva – over the summer, but Harry felt that he was able to process it rationally, and in a much healthier manner now. At first, he had been so overwhelmed that he had placed those thoughts on the backburner but as time went on he had started to feel the burden of them more and more. It was only through talking to Will, and the occasional dinner with Remus that he had been finally able to face them head-on for what they really were. That wasn't to mean, however, that he was prepared to do anything - but just recognizing and accepting what lay before him was enough to center him for the time being.

Harry's focus was interrupted as he arrived at the raised Quidditch stadium that towered over everything and looked very out of place. Though, considering that it was next to a sprawling castle, perhaps it didn't look _that_ out of place. Harry walked through the entrance and turned right towards the stadium seating and began his ascent of the many stairs that stood between him and the top. The scheduling of the Quidditch games were always played in back-to-back weekends to make it as fair as possible so that a team couldn't claim that they hadn't been given enough practice time or hadn't had enough time to recover relative to the other teams.

As he excited to a view of the surrounding countryside he was greeted with stronger winds due to the increased elevation. But he didn't mind in the least. In fact, this was the other reason that he had come early: Harry enjoyed the cold and the slight stinging sensation that it brought against his skin. It made him feel more alive and he snuggled into his heavy cloak to shield himself against the harsher elements. To him, being alone in the stadium and in this setting invigorated his senses and helped him to clear his mind more fully, which he was very much in need of.

With his mind a lot clearer and his mental acuity returning to normal and the distant sounds of the rest of the school making their way here, his thoughts unconsciously turned to the subject of Quidditch. He could hardly believe that Hufflepuff had beaten Gryffindor in last week's match. No matter how many times he pondered over that result in his own mind – something that everyone else in the castle was also struggling with – it just didn't sound right. And it had been in Quidditch of all things, not gobstones!

But they had beaten them, and Hufflepuffs had been living it up and enjoying this rare occasion to celebrate their house's athletic prowess, which was always underestimated by the other houses.

But no one could deny that Cedric had played brilliantly in both of his matches and had again overcome the superior play of the opposing team's chasers to clinch a win for the badgers. The roar from the yellow and black section had been deafening and Cedric had been hoisted upon his team's shoulders and carried to the common room where a grand celebration had immediately commenced, and continued on well into the night.

The atmosphere in their common room had been incredible and the sheer joy was infectious; smiles were plastered on everyone's faces and dinner in the Great Hall was completely forgotten about. But that really didn't matter as the kitchens were literally across the way and some of the older years had gone and requested some elvish hospitality to help them celebrate. Needless to say, Hufflepuff was treated to their own feast that night and the elves were more than happy to provide – and it only added to everyone's good spirits.

Though, it was probably a good thing that they were not at dinner with the rest of the school that night; the riotous and rambunctious noise would have been too much for the other students, and teachers, to handle at that particular moment. The Gryffindor table was far too dejected and could barely do more than push the food back and forth across their plates, let alone be able to stomach the sight of Hufflepuff and the crazed grins cemented on their faces. The shock and disappointment was much too fresh for them right now.

Slytherins, on the other hand, were far more upbeat at seeing their archrivals defeated, and the fact that they had also beat the house of lions made them very content with their prospects of keeping the Quidditch Cup. They could easily take first in the standings if they won their match soundly against Ravenclaw and overtake Hufflepuff – and they were heavily favored to do so. Their only concern at winning the end of the year cup was Cedric Diggory and the things that he could do with his new broom. But that could be easily remedied, and Slytherins were not above using any and all means at their disposal if it suited their purpose.

Now, Gryffindor wasn't completely out of the running for the Quidditch Cup based on the point totals thus far. So they had lost both of their matches, but they were only down by forty points in the overall standings. However much you won or lost a game contributed to your house's ranking. Currently, Hufflepuff was in the lead with a positive forty points after two games, which just showed how narrowly they had won both of them. This was an unusually close year and no team could really be considered out of it as there was only an eighty-point spread from first to last.

Slytherin was in second with a positive twenty indicating how close the match between them and Gryffindor had been. Again, a seeker had decided the outcome of the match as Slytherin had snatched it despite the superior play of the Gryffindor chasers and with Oliver Wood defending the goal post. Next came Ravenclaw with minus twenty points. So as long as Slytherin beat Ravenclaw and then emerged victorious against Hufflepuff, Gryffindor could still finish second in the standings with a resounding victory over Ravenclaw as well. Finally, they could then claim the overall cup in the championship match against Slytherin if the gap between them wasn't too high to overcome and they played their absolute best with a little added luck thrown in. It wasn't an ideal situation by any means, but it was still possible – and quite frankly, they would take any bit of hope to hold to at the moment.

Odd creeks of the wooden floor and bits of conversation indicated to Harry that the students and teachers were starting to trickle into the stadium now and fill the remaining seats. This was a highly anticipated match given the current standings and house pride was always at stake in these instances. The Gryffindor team was huddled together on the opposite side ready to take notes and dissect the play of Ravenclaw. Gryffindor seemed to put all of their focus on the next match against the eagles and their spirits had risen considerably in the past week by focusing on nothing else. The next game was do-or-die for them and they were going to put everything that they had into it.

Cedric and the rest of the Hufflepuff players were also seated closely together in preparation for their next match against Slytherin. They were determined to keep their winning streak alive and secure a birth in the championship game for the first time in many years. They desperately wanted to keep up their performance and the positive effects that it was having on their house. The rest of the school was finally looking at them somewhat seriously now, and they intended to keep it that way.

In Hufflepuff, the entire student body had been besides themselves at just beating Ravenclaw, but there really weren't any good words to describe how they were feeling now; it was just that magical and it was being savored by every badger. Alumni were even making arrangements to come and see their final game. The older years were maybe more realistic about their overall chances considering they still had Slytherin to go up against and then a presumable final match if they didn't screw up their chances, but they were still going out of their minds at this opportunity; just not as much as the younger students were.

Harry, in particular, was most pleased with the effect that his little purchase had had on the team, everyone was playing better knowing that they had this state-of-the-art broom backing up their star seeker. It may not have brought them up to the play of the other teams, but there was a marked improvement nonetheless. Harry had also sent Cedric a regular Christmas gift in an attempt to take any suspicion off of him as being the anonymous sender.

At first Cedric had wondered whether his parents had splurged and gotten it for him; however, he didn't think that anyone could have faked the reaction that they had when he unwrapped it. His father had just about started jumping up and down in excitement at thinking about what the broom could do for Cedric's future. The Diggorys were not poor, but they weren't rich either. Cedric's father did respectable work in the Ministry but didn't have a position of prestige and therefore he had little clout to work something out for his son after graduation. It was the children, sons preferably, of well-connected parents that got the better positions as favors or even gold changed hands. Therefore, the elder Diggorys didn't care where this boon had come from, just that it had come. Becoming a star Quidditch player could allow him to jump into better opportunities that his father wouldn't have been able to provide him.

Of course, Cedric had thought perhaps that Harry had given it to him because it just sounded like something that the other boy would do but it was a very expensive gift and he ruled it out almost immediately because no one except the Malfoy Heir had _that_ much gold lying around. There were rumors that The Potters were well off, but Harry was a child and certainly wouldn't have access to the family vaults yet. And Sirius would hardly have given him any of the Black's gold so soon, right? Cedric was truly stumped as to who had given him the broom – and had reached the point where he too was simply thankful that he had received it and had stopped guessing as to who his mystery benefactor was.

Harry was interrupted from his thoughts by Neville's arrival. He had taken Harry's absence that morning to safely escort their friend, Hermione, to the pitch, but she was sitting with her house to support their team – and she hadn't even brought a book! She had become that enthralled with cheering for and sharing in the camaraderie of her house, and was making friends more easily than she ever had among those who didn't believe in blood purity. It was something that her parents had always hoped for her and had been overjoyed at the change they had seen in her over the recent break. There was this confidence about her now and she actively engaged them, and others that they met, in conversation now.

"Hiya Harry," Neville squeaked.

The cold air had that affect sometimes on the vocal cords, and the blush that spread across his friend's cheeks made Harry smile. Neville had a very endearing quality about him.

"Hey, Neville. Enjoying the chill in the air?" A friendly teasing was evident in his eyes.

Neville shivered slightly; he definitely preferred being warm and wrapped his cloak as tightly around his body as he could and shook his head back and forth.

"No, definitely not."

"I love it, I would rather be cold than warm any day. You can always put more clothes on but there is only so many that you can take off!"

"Ahh, this is nice!" Harry mimicked lying out in the sun by putting his hands behind his head and stretching backwards while kicking his feet out.

Neville snorted and rolled his eyes at his friend.

"You're full of it."

Harry returned to his normal position and made a face and stuck his tongue out at Neville as he sat down besides him.

"What made you want to come down here so early?" Neville inquired while shoving his gloved hands between his thighs to keep them warm.

Harry shrugged.

"Oh, I just wanted some time to think, and I really do like the cold air. I find that it helps clear my mind and allows me to focus better."

Neville was looking at him expectantly, silently encouraging Harry to be more open with him if he wanted to be.

Harry hadn't yet told his friends about his therapy sessions but if anyone would understand some of the issues he was dealing with, it would be Neville.

"Well, between us?" Harry met Neville's eyes and he continued on after a slight nod from his friend.

"I have been seeing a Mind Healer since the beginning of the year – ever since Sirius was released. Remus thought it would be good for me since Sirius was going through the same thing. I realized that there were issues that I had never quite come to peace with. My parents, for one…"

The air suddenly seemed a lot warmer to Neville as he stopped worrying about the cold – he suspected what some of those issues were since he was doubtful that he had made any progress with his own either – sometimes he forgot just how many similarities him and Harry had in common. Some things you could just never explain to someone, and they would never truly understand unless they had dealt with similar issues.

All Neville could do was motion for Harry to continue.

"And it's helped, Neville. It has really helped. I still wish that my parents were here of course and I know that I don't quite understand all of the circumstances surrounding their death yet, but it has helped."

Harry looked out over the field; at peace with the place his mind was in.

"Will, my therapist, has given me a lot of useful tools to calm myself and I'm very happy with the progress. There are other things, but I'm not sure I'm ready to talk about those yet…"

Neville understood. Completely. And he just wanted Harry to know that he could always come to him.

"And you know I'm here right?"

"I know Neville, I appreciate it. Truly. And I'm here for you as well."

They both smiled and nodded their head in appreciation and sat back in contemplative silence for a few moments. Neville was the one to break the quiet that was becoming louder as more people filled the stadium.

"Do you think I should see a Mind Healer? Gran never really talks about what happened to my parents much. I've always felt like I was a disappointment to her. Did you know that she had doubts that I was even a wizard when I was younger?"

Harry looked sadly at his friend.

"For a long while my family thought I was a squib," Neville further explained.

The boys were close but there were some things that could never be shared right away and took time to get to.

"I don't think it would hurt, Neville. I think more people should be comfortable talking to someone who is impartial and can provide assistance. The more I am with Will, the more I am able to work things out on my own now because I can talk about a situation and see it for what it really is and I don't ignore things anymore or push them aside."

"I would like that, but I don't know if gran would be that keen on it, though. She would have to take me and I don't think she wants to spend any more time in St. Mungos; seeing my parents weekly is enough for her to handle as it is."

Harry thought a moment.

"You should talk to Remus – I do it here on Saturday mornings. You may need your gran's permission, I'm not sure how those things work in the wizarding world."

Neville seemed to think that it was a possibility. He knew that his gran had issues of her own and was always fighting some internal battle.

On one hand it seemed that she really did want to be there for Neville, but she was so depressed with what had happened to Frank and Alice that she was never able to fully be there for him.

Maybe she would be okay knowing that he was doing this for himself and trying to make a better life for himself.

And Neville sat a little taller as he had made a decision that, unbeknownst to him, would help him in many ways. His eyes were smiling as he watched the stadium fill around them. By this point all of the students and faculty were in their seats and waiting for the match to begin; the stadium could hold far more people, however, but they had their own little corner and only a few other Hufflepuffs were around. The rest of their year were towards the front railing and standing, not caring that they had no one to support because they were still too enthralled with the live aspect of the matches. Well, that wasn't entirely true; Slytherin was playing so they were of course rooting for the other team.

Meanwhile, Harry was thinking about his friend and how he hoped that therapy could do for Neville what it had done for him. But all things considered, Neville was a very caring individual and despite his tepidness at public interaction, he was a very loyal person. Neville had the ability to ask questions in a very non-threatening way; even if it was about a subject that could be sensitive to someone he tended to be able to get them to open up without even realizing what he was doing. Harry wondered if Neville had ever heard the term 'caregiver-nurturer.' It fit him to a tee.

Suddenly, the scoreboard came to life magically and listed the school standings so that everyone knew – as if they didn't already – what the stakes of the match were.

Harry just had to state the obvious.

"I can't believe we are in first place! Merlin, who would have thought?"

"I know, the castle has been very interesting with everything going on. I've noticed that the Ravenclaw team has been putting in some heavy practices, especially in the last week. I don't think they want Slytherin to win this too easily. And Hermione keeps telling us about all of their strategizing. I don't think she realizes that we are in different houses sometimes with the information she gives away."

Harry and Neville both shared a look in which they both knew what they other one was thinking: they had become so close that sometimes they forgot that she was in a different house as well.

"I know what you mean. I think Ravenclaw wants to end with at least one victory and Hermione did say that they were approaching this from multiple angles and trying to plan for any and all scenarios that they would come up against. I think it will be an interesting match. Ravenclaw is better at strategy and has great chasers, but Slytherin doesn't really have a wink link. I'm just glad that I don't play – you can see all of our players over there ready to note every play and I would much rather be here with you."

Harry indicated to where Cedric and company was and Neville nodded in agreement with Harry's statement of just preferring to enjoy the match.

Just then, Madam Hooch stalked onto the team and the crowd gave a last burst of sound before quieting down as she introduced the teams.

Neville took this opportunity to ask Harry something that had been on his mind for a while now and they had relatively privacy to have this talk without fear of being overheard.

"Harry, have you noticed anything strange about Draco?" Neville was fiddling with his hands and was looking straight ahead.

Harry wasn't that surprised with the question; the more he got to know Neville, the more he noticed just how little slipped by him. Neville was a quiet person but he had a real sense of who someone was.

"I'm not surprised that you noticed; I'm more surprised that no one else has. Though, it has been only little things here and there, and it has only been since the holidays."

Neville looked at Harry this time, nodding in agreement before providing additional insight.

"Whatever it was, he came back from break … _different_. He tries to act like nothing is wrong, and he does a pretty good job with it for the most part, but around us in the library he is more open than he used to be. He seems more sincere. At first, I thought he was playing us and kept waiting for him to pull whatever prank he was planning - but now, I don't know what to think."

Harry sighed. He had been wondering the exact same thing since Draco had approached them in the beginning of the year, and even more so now that something had clearly happened to him.

"I know what you mean. I thought the same thing, especially when you consider what side of the political and social spectrum we each belong to… but I guess we just continue on as things have been going and hope to figure it out eventually?"

Neville's answer was cut off as the quaffle was released into the air and the players took to their brooms. They needed to talk a little louder now to be able to hear each other over the roars of the crowd in support of their respective teams.

"I think that would be best, unless something else happens and we need to reconsider. I hope it isn't a prank though; for what it's worth I am really hoping he is our friend. I never thought _I_ would say that about a Malfoy."

Neville snorted into his hands and covered it up by pretending to blow warm air on them. Harry let him have his moment of awkwardness. But he knew how he was feeling, Harry was right there with him.

"It is weird wanting to be friends with a Malfoy – so very weird." For a moment they shared a look that was too advanced for their respective ages to sustain for very long. And if that didn't get the point across, then Neville made sure that Harry was on the same page as him.

"Thank you, Harry." Neville said softly but with conviction, amidst the sounds of the beaters trying to unseat the other players.

Harry cocked his head to the side, suddenly very curious in what Neville was implying.

"For what, Neville?" Harry's eyes were warm and it helped Neville to overcome his own fear of reaction in this moment. Which was the entire reason for the comment in the first place.

"For being my friend, it's changed me."

"Nev," the raven-haired boy responded softly. Harry's eyes immediately started to shine a bright, emerald green and Neville suddenly felt a lot more comfortable in the cold than he had since he got there.

"You don't have to thank me for that, if anything, I should thank you. But I guess friends don't have to thank one another. It kind of comes with being best mates and all."

Neville didn't know what to say after that and just elbowed Harry lightly with his arm.

They moved on to inconsequential topics after that and got into the game more as time went on. Ravenclaw was leading on the backs of their chasers outwitting Slytherin, but they still needed to catch the snitch and their seeker was currently chasing behind her competition as they streaked across the pitch desperately looking for the snitch. The thing about Quidditch was that despite all of the buildup and play that could last hours, it was over the moment that the seeker caught the snitch. Sometimes it happened so quickly that the players continued on until the energy of the match dissipated and players came out of their 'zones.' For the winning team, this wasn't so much of a problem, but it was very hard on the losing team who suddenly had nothing left to hang onto.

And that was exactly what was happening to Ravenclaw now as Slytherin erupted in cheers as they had narrowly defeated Ravenclaw by forty points courtesy of the snitch being waved around in their seeker's fist. It wasn't the run-away game that some people had expected, and it made the final standings that much closer. Ravenclaw was now sixty points in the hole and in last place with Gryffindor ahead of them at minus forty points. Next came Hufflepuff in second with a positive forty and Slytherin were just two quaffles ahead of them at sixty. No one was technically out of it and either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor could still claw their way back into contention. It would be an exciting final two matches that everyone could look forward to and Harry and Neville were sure that every team would be extending their practice schedules as much as possible.

The rest of the day was spent grabbing a late lunch before heading to the library and getting their homework out of the way. Hermione was doing her best to not look too dejected at having watched her house fail a second time and was a little too overeager to get started on their assignments. Neville and Harry, along with Hannah and Susan, did their best to walk that line between cheering her up and not reminding her of why they were doing it. It got slightly awkward as Draco arrived in tow with Blaise and Daphne, but everyone was surprisingly civil, and the Slytherins didn't gloat _too_ much about their house's victory.

They broke up briefly for dinner before returning to finish any remaining work that they had.

After the conversation that they had had while watching the game, Neville and Harry paid particular attention to Draco's behavior without drawing attention to themselves. They didn't want to give away what they were doing. One of the ways that they achieved this was by engaging Draco in more conversation than was perhaps normal, but by no means significantly different as to arouse suspicion. They would of course be filling in Hermione about what they had discussed at a more appropriate time and kept their observations private for the time being.

Draco had already recognized that he may have acted differently since returning from break and had cottoned on to the increased scrutiny that Potter and Longottom put him under. They were right to question why a Malfoy had approached them and had been slightly on guard ever since. He knew that they would notice a difference once he returned but around them he afforded himself extra leave to let his guard down and be more friendly with them. He reasoned that if anyone asked, he had an excuse in what his father had requested of him. And he was glad that he had that, because he was finding these study sessions as something that he looked forward to.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think!**


	23. Draco's Warning

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, I really want to get into some of the Magic of Hogwarts and begin to explore its history. To that end, I think Runes is a fascinating subject and I tried to incorporate some historical accuracy along with my own interpretations – hopefully I will be able to expand upon some of the themes that I introduce in this and in later chapters.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; I am so thankful for JKR and all that she did for us. She gave us one of the greatest gifts, and so many people have taken to this site and played brilliantly with her creation. We should have a JKR day and it should be a global holiday!**

* * *

Harry fell asleep while reading a book on the subject of Runes that he had taken from the library at Grimmauld Place. Cedric and him were still no closer to understanding the marks on the wall that they had discovered right before Christmas, but Harry had come a long way in understanding the different runes that were currently in use. It was all very fascinating to him and he found himself getting lost in the nuances of it all. For example, there was not a consensus among academics in how runic scripts evolved from its primal state; competing theories existed that detailed how runes, as they were studied in Hogwarts, came to be.

Ancient Runes, as a class, was actually a misnomer so to speak. The language was technically called 'Younger Furthark,' and hadn't changed much since it became the dominant form in the ninth century.

It was partly because of the fact that it hadn't changed all that much since the time of the Founders as to why Harry and Cedric were both confused that the marks that they had discovered didn't align with the predominant form in use at the time Hogwarts was erected. This led them to believe that Hogwarts was either older than anyone had thought (which was unlikely), the room that they had discovered existed before Hogwarts, or that the founders had used an older and more ancient form in which the knowledge of its use had since been lost to time.

The best that they could figure right now – and what most people inclined to studying its lore agreed on - was that Younger Furthark descended from Elder Furthark, which existed between the second and eighth centuries. From there, and this was where the disagreement started, some maintained that Elder Furthark descended from the Greek alphabet via Gothic contact with the Byzantine Greek culture. But, Muggle science and the dating of the Vimose inscriptions in Denmark had recently disproved this. As expected, some wizards didn't believe that nonsense and maintained their original thinking because the Greek alphabet shared letters with Elder Furthark.

However, the truth was that a North Italic variant, most likely Etruscan or Raetic, or even the Latin alphabet itself was the parent system of Elder Furthark. This meant that Younger Furthark could trace its founding all the way back to the Phoenician alphabet, which was one of the first recorded languages in written form.

Harry loved discovering the origins of things and this left him with a sense of awe and wonder at watching knowledge and the construct of language and sharing ideas transform over time.

All in all, it was a very content Harry that drifted off to sleep later that night.

Now, there was one _little_ difference between the runes that Muggles used and those used by wizards – and that was magic. Over time, wizards had refined the shapes and use of runes and their combinations to augment wards, serve in potions and other rituals, and even become used in curses and the deadliest of the Dark Arts. What was unknown to many that considered themselves experts in this field was that over time, as runes became more specific in their intent as the language changed, their original meanings and power had been lost to but a few who knew their true and original forms. It was with this knowledge and skill that those runes in the foundation of Hogwarts had been etched and it would take Harry and Cedric a few years to discover that lost branch of magic – and they wouldn't be the only ones.

* * *

Harry woke the next day with the book on runes still resting on his chest. He groggily moved the book off of him and spent a few minutes stretching to get the kinks out of his body from falling asleep in a slightly uncomfortable position. But Harry was used to this feeling and it hadn't been the first time that this had happened – nor would it be the last. It was the price he paid for being a bookworm.

From there, he made his way to the shower and allowed himself extra time to enjoy the pulsating water kneading his achy body. He then had to rush slightly as he dressed so that he could make it to Sunday breakfast early and meet Cedric in advance of their date to explore the castle more. Though, in the past few weeks they hadn't actually been making much headway in finding out other hidden treasures; they had been pretty focused on the secret tunnel that they had found that led to the hallowed out rock beneath the infirmary.

Of course, it had been extremely difficult to try and get back in there without arousing suspicion considering where the entrance was located and that there was always someone coming and going through the common room except in the dead of the night. It was proving difficult for them to schedule a Friday or Saturday night where they could take time and return to it without being noticed, and had only been able to manage it once since returning from the Christmas holidays. To say that it had been frustrating to them would be a serious understatement.

And in that rare trip where they had managed to sneak away undetected, they still hadn't been able to ferret out anymore of its secrets and had resigned themselves to at least try and decipher the runic inscription. To that end the pair had been meeting in the Library on Sunday morning after breakfast in an attempt to gather as much information as they could about runes, as well as their history. Cedric had suggested that perhaps they were runes that simply were not covered until later and had tried skimming through a bunch of the upper year's material – but hadn't seem anything that resembled the marks that he was looking for.

Cedric did fill Harry in on something that was truly fascinating both magically and as how the runic language functioned. He had told him that the meanings of runes could be further defined or interpreted by their position. For instance, whether they were upright or reverse – upside down – could significantly change their function and purpose. Likewise, whether they were pointed to the left or to the right could also change their meaning, or, at the very least, signify to whom or what they were directed towards. It was a truly interactive language and had only made Harry more determined to see this through.

Harry had even owled Flourish and Blotts to see if they carried any books about the origin or history of magical runes and he was currently waiting on the owner to track down some books for him that he didn't have in stock. The owner had become used to Harry's odd requests and simply figured he enjoyed to learn new things, and didn't mind the extra work considering how much Harry tended to buy. Well that, and some of the books that he requested tended to be quite pricey and therefore netted him a nice profit.

Harry was currently halfway through his simple meal when Cedric arrived and slid into the empty seat across from him. Harry looked up from the book that he had brought with him and smiled at his friend.

"Morning Harry," Cedric said hurriedly as he filled his plate with an assortment of items that didn't look like they would all fit comfortably inside his lean frame.

Harry agreed with that assessment and stared at the size of Cedric's plate with wide eyes.

"What?" Cedric finally uttered with a mouthful of food at Harry's amusing facial expression? He managed to somehow swallow before continuing after Harry raised an eyebrow in response.

"I'm Hungry! We have been having the most intense Quidditch practices. Everyone is really on edge after our unexpected victory against Gryffindor last week and with the updated standings as of yesterday's match between Ravenclaw and Slytherin. The team doesn't want to lose this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make the Quidditch final and play for the House Cup. We even had practice last night after the match! Our captain is crazy."

Cedric went right back to piling food in his mouth as if there was a time limit and he wouldn't be able to eat anymore once the buzzer went off.

Harry just shook his head, smiled, and went back to the book he was reading while they both finished their meals using two very different approaches.

Once their plates were clean, they decided that they needed a break from the library today and exited the Great Hall to continue on where they had left off a few weeks ago. They didn't find anything new that day, but they were able to check off a portion of the castle and they were slowly but surely making their way through every nook and cranny.

The next few weeks fell into the same routine. Classwork was getting more intense as the end of the year was approaching and some of the students were already starting to feel the pressure. Even though the exams weren't for a couple of months, the increased amount of homework that they were being assigned stressed out more than a few students out. Generally speaking, those who had been on top of their work from the beginning of the year adjusted easily to the increased workload; however, there were always a few that managed to require a trip to the infirmary for a calming draught.

In particular, one of the fiery red hair brigade, who also happened to be a first year, had lost it one day in class and steam and literally been coming out of his ears. Harry had found at later that it had been Ronald Weasley, the youngest boy in his family, who had also happened to have unknowingly harbored Peter Pettigrew for a few years before he had come to Hogwarts. It seemed that that event had caused him to put more effort into his studies, but he hadn't yet learned a system that worked for him. He could often be seen in the library occasionally with a somewhat lost look on his face as he attempted to search through the extensive collection that Hogwarts housed.

On one of these occasions when he had seemed particularly out of his element on the eve of handing in the longest potions essay to date, Hermione had taken pity on him and gone over to help. She had returned to the table with the boy in tow and he had since become a staple at their study sessions.

Not everyone seemed particularly pleased with this development, but aside from the few looks that Harry had occasionally seen from Draco – who looked like he was desperately holding his tongue – Ron was quickly accepted by the group and become the lone Gryffindor studying with them.

About a week after this incident as the weather was on a slight upswing and the majority of the snow had melted, Harry was in the Potions' dungeon gathering his belongings at the end of his double period when Snape called on him to remain behind.

Harry started to wonder what this would be about since he was sure that it didn't have anything to do with his schoolwork. He had been a straight O student in the subject and Snape had even commented on a few of his essays as to him being insightful and extremely thoughtful in regards to the science of potion making. Hermione and Neville had offered to wait for him but Harry waved them along and told them to inform McGonagall that he would be a little late to Transfiguration.

Harry patiently waited in his seat for the other students to gather their things and head out and looked to Snape the moment that the last student had exited. Snape was sitting at his desk with an odd look on his face. Harry decided that he would wait until Snape initiated the conversation because it suddenly dawned on him that Snape had never mentioned the note and gift that he had sent him for Christmas. Not that he really knew how one would respond to something like that and a funny feeling settled into the pit of his stomach at the prospect that he was going to find out.

Snape rose from his desk and moved all of the flasks of potions that the previous students had submitted to be graded after their lesson into one of the side rooms and off of his desk with a quick flick of his wand.

He then sat partially on the front of his desk with his feet still providing some support; his eyes were focused on his wand that he was rolling gingerly between his fingers.

"I realize that I never acknowledged your gift over the holidays and I wanted to thank you for that rare specimen. The shedding of an Egyptian Asp is something every potions master dreams of at some point – I do believe that the only thing more exceptional would be the freely given blood of a unicorn."

Snape's obsidian orbs met Harry's eyes, which were the exact replica of Lily's. Harry noticed the slight grimace that the man made and correctly guessed as to what was going on with him.

"I trust you know what the blood of a Unicorn can be used for? I admit I would be surprised if you did not know considering how you excel both in the lab and on your written assignments."

Harry took a moment to take in the rare, but honest, praise from one of his most admired teachers.

"Thank you sir… as for Unicorns, I do believe their blood will prevent death in almost any circumstance should you ingest some. However, isn't it seen as not worth it considering Unicorns are regarded as one of the most pure beings? I was to understand that something akin to a curse was placed upon those individuals that took the blood that didn't belong to them."

Snape nodded and Harry saw a sheen pass through those black eyes that he took to mean Snape was satisfied with his response.

"Correct, and do you know why their blood is both a blessing and a curse?"

Harry shook his head, but he leaned forward slightly in his chair, hoping that Snape would not leave him hanging.

"Blood, as you know, is everything to a magical being. Our essence is one and the same with our blood and anything that we possess flows through our blood."

Harry's eyes turned inward as he processed what he had partly suspected which had just been confirmed.

"It is why the bond you made with Kaa was made with a bite. He needed your blood to make it hold, and his venom is a representation of all that he is. In fact, the venom of Kaa would be something that I would be most interested in having, but that is something, like the blood of a Unicorn that must be freely given, to be used to its full potential. Otherwise, the nature of the magic that is within the venom will hinder its usefulness."

Harry was loving having all of this knowledge handed to him, though he began to hope that Snape hadn't set up this conversation just to extract venom from Kaa. Harry thought that Kaa would be only too happy to give it to the man – and he just told Harry so – but he expected more from Snape.

Snape seemed to realize some of Harry's thought process.

"I am not asking that of you or Kaa – should you every want to give it, that is another matter, but my point in mentioning it was to provide you with another example of the magical properties and 'ownership' of something. The same would apply to the blood of a witch or wizard – it must be given rather than taken or else there could be unforeseen consequences."

Harry breathed a slight sigh of relief, and Snape was glad that he had read the young man correctly.

Snape continued on.

"Back to my original point, since Unicorns are viewed as the purest of all magical beings, their blood has properties that have never truly been fully studied since it is not everyday that a Unicorn bequeaths its blood. Most think that Potions is a very dry and boring subject, but there are new things to discover all of the time. On that note, I wanted to let you know that I discovered a new use for the scales of an Egyptian Asp."

Snape reached into his pocket and pulled out a vial that was full of metallic liquid and handed it over to Harry with another wave of his wand. Harry closed his fingers around it and noted a certain familiarity that radiated from the vial and through his hands before coursing throughout the rest of his body.

Snape's eyes were concentrated on the vial.

"That is a potion that will heal almost anything – I say almost because it is only my experience with Potions that allows me to think that it will counteract a lot of poisons or injuries based on its composition. I think it has many of the same uses as a bezoar, but has the added benefit of treating severe bodily harm."

Harry's eye widened at Snape's description. This was practically priceless! In this moment, Harry felt a little like Link, a character that Dudley often went on about, and that he was collecting rare items to help him on his journey.

"Can you guess why it can act against poisons but can also heal?"

Snape would have a hard time admitting just how much of his own enthusiasm for the craft that he saw in Harry and was rather enjoying this conversation between them. He never would have thought that he would enjoy whatever it was that was going on between them, but he owed a lot of his recent ability to deal with the demons of his past to Harry. He would at least try the best he could to return the favor, even if he didn't quite know how to; it had been a long time since Snape had willingly wanted to help someone without expecting anything in return.

"I would expect that it had something to do with how deadly Kaa could be – _to the wrong person -_ " he hissed at his friend. "- but also with his ability to give life in exchange for his own. His venom, with some residual traces still in the scales, could counteract a lesser poison and you somehow were able to replicate his other quality, I take it?"

"You really are a lot like your mother, Harry"

Harry would never get tired of being compared to one of his parents in that manner.

Snape took a deep breath.

'Here it comes,' Harry thought to himself, slightly uncomfortable at what Snape might say and over what praise he had just received.

"I wanted to thank you for your other gift, but I don't deserve it. Not from Lily, and certainly not from you. Not after…"

Snape was so close to telling Harry the role that he had played in his mother's death and setting it up. At the time, he didn't know that it pertained to Harry for it could have also been Neville. But his vow compelled him to act in the Headmaster's gamble to finish Voldemort once and for all, or so he thought. Snape had not been aware of the real prophecy and was not culpable in that, but he still could never forgive himself for what had happened to Lily.

Harry remembered that night when they had destroyed the first Horcrux and Snape had looked at him with the same guilty expression on his face. It was obvious that the man had done something heinous and that it had affected Harry in some way. But Harry had already been resolved to forgiving this man, for he had already seen the pain it had caused and the regret in his features. Deep down, he suspected that he already knew what the event must have been – and he had already made peace with that, finally. What else could it have been? He would ease the man's suffering – he would channel his mum.

"You didn't kill them, sir." Harry correct guessed quietly.

Snape's face whipped up to stare at the boy, his face slowly draining of color.

"Voldemort did, and Pettigrew helped him…" his eyes shone with a faint green light. "And whatever role you played in that you have already atoned for."

Harry continued on after knowing he was on the right track.

"I know you have a Dark Mark on your arm; I know that you served him – but you don't anymore. Especially with that Vow you took, that I am pretty sure is still active?"

Snape nodded slowly.

Harry had been reading about the history of the Dark Lord and how he had marked his followers and he remembered Snape's story from that night back in August.

"So whatever happened, you had to do it – to destroy him. My parents knew that, and they did whatever they could to help. It isn't easy, Professor. And I wish they were here, but they aren't. They died for me so that I could live. They protected me until the very end, and they went into hiding knowing how it would end for them. My last memory of my mum was her defending me from him – it was the only dream I had for a long while… and it took me even longer to process it. But I finally did and I am proud of my parents."

Tears were on both of their faces.

"It was war, Professor. I'm not that naïve to ignore what really happens in that situation. And when he returns, I know that you will fight him alongside me. Not because you have to, but because you want to. And that is why we are kay."

Snape could only nod in stunned response. And he would fight Voldemort at Harry's side, and give his life if it came to that. He would do anything for Lily's child, for he embodied everything that he loved about her, and he would prepare him as best he could.

They both sat in silence for a length of time where both were lost to their own inner thoughts. And, well, Snape wasn't exactly the loquacious sort – especially given what had just occurred.

Eventually, Snape gathered his senses again and dismissed Harry to lunch and told him that he would speak with Minerva about his absence. From then on they shared a deep understanding of who the other person was at their core, and it was cemented with a last nod from Harry as he excited to make his way to the Great Hall.

* * *

A few days later Harry was in the library working on an essay for Charms with Neville and Hermione. Harry and Cedric had planned to go into the secret passageway this weekend and both had agreed to get their homework out of the way so that all they needed to do this weekend was sleep, explore, and, in Cedric's case, play Quidditch and eat a massive amount of food. His match against Slytherin was fast approaching and the intensity of the workouts had been increasingly tense, and he was determined to do things outside of Quidditch or homework that he enjoyed doing to keep him sane. And spending time with Harry and exploring the castle was definitely one of them and so he made sure to find a way to fit it in.

"I can't wait until we start getting into some of the more advanced charms," Hermione almost whined as they were finishing their assignment on making levitating objects spin around.

"I mean, just think – soon we are going to get into color-changing charms and those that will change the size of the object. Imagine: in a few years we will even start learning charms that will affect us. I am particularly interested in the Cheering Charm, and I wonder if we will get into how it affects the body. I wonder if they get addicting like some of the medications used in the Muggle world? My parents told me all sorts of stories about some of their patients getting addicted to painkillers…"

At this point Harry and Neville had tuned Hermione out. Sometimes she would start by addressing them and then get so focused on her internal thought process that they had quickly learned that it was probably best to just let her finish her train of thought and not interrupt her. They would add in their two cents on the subject when she came around. Everyone had quirks about them and this was definitely something that was quintessential to how Hermione functioned, and Harry understood how one could get so lost in their thoughts. Sometimes even he was a victim to the tangents that his mind would take him on. It was one of the things that connected him closely to his friend and allowed them to build on their friendship.

Hermione was still rambling on when Draco Malfoy arrived by himself a few moments later. It was later in the night and not too many people were around. He briefly stopped at their table and said hello to all of them and quickly left, but before he did he caught eyes with Harry and motioned to Harry's lap where a folded up piece of parchment had suddenly appeared. He raised his eyebrow ever so slightly and Harry got the message that whatever was written inside was important. He nodded in a way that he had hardly moved his head to respect the secrecy in which Draco was using for this, for Harry had quickly caught on that Draco had wanted this exchange to be between them and only them.

Harry waited a few second after Draco departed before slyly unraveling the note and reading it quickly.

 _Cedric is in danger._

Harry's eyes widened in alarm and he then quickly excused himself mentioning something about Remus and that he forgot something and needed to see him right away.

Neville raised an eyebrow, obviously not buying it but giving Harry room, while Hermione paused briefly to say farewell before continuing on mumbling to herself.

Harry ran from the library and entered the nearest empty classroom and furiously tore through his belongings looking for his map.

He impatiently waited for it to activate and quickly looked for Cedric's name anywhere on the map. After a few moments with no success he remembered that tonight was when Cedric had Quidditch practice. He paused and contemplated that the current time would be right around when they finished their practice. He returned to the map and focused on the part closest to the pitch that the team would walk through as they entered the castle again.

Dots started to appear that signified the other members of the Hufflepuff team and he counted six before Cedric's name appeared. He was lagging behind the others, no doubt exhausted from his session.

Harry's attention suddenly noticed that there was a small group of names waiting in a spot that would make the perfect ambush point as he made his way back to the common room. All it took was for Harry to recognize that they were from the Slytherin Quidditch team and he was soon running towards his friend to warn him. He didn't have a plan but figured that his Invisibility Cloak would come in handy and had it in his hands as he raced through the castle towards Cedric.

He took a different route to Cedric than would lead him past those looking to ambush Cedric and managed to get to his friend right before he rounded the corner from where the Slytherins were hiding. Cedric was somewhat startled at Harry being out of breath and suddenly appearing and he had to put his wand away after Harry had practically rushed up to him from behind.

"Harry!" he exclaimed.

Unfortunately, the commotion had caused the Slytherins to give up their tactical advantage and face the younger students in full force.

Harry wasn't one to stick around and see where this was going and he grabbed Cedric's hand and took off in the opposite direction, retracing the route he had just come from. He knew that there was no way for them to take on the older students nor would they have any hope it out-running them. The small lead they had would have to be put to good use and Harry would only get one chance with this. The moment they rounded a corner that from Harry's memory had little indentations in the walls and many doors, he shoved Cedric against a wall with all the strength that he had and flung the cloak over them.

Harry's mind was working in overtime and he knew that despite being invisible they would still be physically occupying their current space and sound couldn't be covered. He covered Cedric's mouth with one hand and brought a finger on his other hand up to his mouth to gave the sign for 'quiet.'

Their hearts were beating wildly as the Slytherins rounded the corner and stopped once they could no longer see their intended targets in the long hall. Cedric moved to get his wand and Harry had to restrain him with the hand that had been shushing him. He grasped Cedric's wand hand and pleaded with his eyes for some sign of understanding that they were invisible.

Eventually, Cedric had noticed that the people they were running from were not looking directly at them and where talking hurriedly among themselves. He had managed to catch a few words here and there that eventually clicked in his mind that they did not see them.

The Slytherins did not stand idly by and started walking up the hall intent on finding their targets; they didn't want them to escape and lose their chance at taking Cedric out of commission before the match.

Cedric pulled Harry closer to him and squeezed his hand as he nodded briefly to the younger boy that he finally understood what was going on. Sweat was starting to collect on their faces at being so close together under the cloak and from the fear of the situation. Their breathing almost stopped when one of the other boys walked past them, only leaving a few feet between them. At this point, Cedric's arms were wrapped protectively around Harry, and the younger boy would have appreciated this fact at literally any other moment except the one that they were currently in.

Thankfully, the fifth-year Slytherin beater did not come any closer and eventually all of them proceeded down the hall, peering into various classrooms and opening up closed doors. Cedric and Harry remained clinging to each other long after the other boys were gone from sight until the bell chimed indicating that curfew was now in effect. They each took a long sigh of relief as they kept the cloak on them and walked quietly to their common room, still holding onto one another's hand. It wouldn't do them any favors for being caught out after curfew after just escaping a potentially painful altercation.

 **Let me know what you think!**


	24. No Turning Back Now

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, hope you like where I continue to take this!

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; I am so thankful for JKR and all that she did for us. She gave us one of the greatest gifts, and so many people have taken to this site and played brilliantly with her creation. We should have a JKR day and it should be a global holiday!**

* * *

Harry was tired; the adrenaline that had been coursing through his veins only moments before as Cedric and him had cautiously made their way through the castle was gone the moment that he stepped inside Hufflepuff. Cedric was right there with him and leaned against the wall with one hand to support himself and took that time to take his first deep breaths now that Harry and him were finally out of danger.

They were fortunate that no one was present in the common room because they had not dared take off the invisibility cloak in case the Slytherins were lurking outside the entrance to their common room in a last ditch effort to get Cedric.

Harry was leaning against the wall near the entrance that they had just come through and managed to catch Cedric's eyes; there was gratitude in them but also a curiosity. His eyebrows were scrunched in thought and he seemed to be considering the night's events. No doubt he had questions for Harry and wanted to know how he had known that the Slytherins were waiting for him.

"Harry," he started.

"First, thank you. I don't want to think about what they would have done to me – I can't believe their Quidditch team would sink so low."

Harry tried to wave him off.

"You would have done the same for me."

Harry had wanted it to sound stronger but it came out as more of a question.

"Of course I would have!" Cedric reaffirmed.

"I mean, it would be crazy thought. But that cloak, without it we would have been in trouble. Where did you get something like that?"

Cedric had now moved over to where Harry was standing and was running the slightly shimmering fabric that Harry was holding through his hands.

The mention of the cloak and the closeness of Cedric brought Harry back to where they were standing that offered very little privacy.

"Do you want to finish this in my room?" He asked in a soft voice, aware that someone may be lurking in the hallway that led to where the dorms were and overhear their conversation. He really wanted to keep his cloak a secret for as long as possible.

"I just want to keep this," he gestured to his cloak that they were both holding, "between you and me for right now."

Cedric nodded. It made sense; it was an incredibly rare magical item. And Cedric had more questions that he wanted answered, and he would now be able to ask them.

Harry turned to walk towards his room and Cedric trudged on after him. Aside from the questions that Cedric had, they both were in need of a little downtime after what had just happened and wouldn't have been able to go to sleep right now anyways. Their blood pressure was just returning to normal and despite the crash in their energy levels, their minds were too active for sleep at the moment. It was also nice to feel safe, and they were relieved that their senses no longer had to be functioning at the highest level to keep them that way. The stress of trying to not give away their position underneath the cloak had been taxing, and both were fully aware of just how painful the consequences would have been had they been discovered.

Kaa was alerted to their presence by the opening of the door and lazily stirred about his toasty nest above Harry's headboard; however, the dried perspiration and the smell of fear that still lingered on both of them, besides Cedric being here at this hour, was more than enough to make Kaa concerned that something had happened to his bonded one and his friend. And he wasted no time in trying to figure things out.

" _Young one, what has happened that has caused you to return at this hour and in this state_?"

Kaa slithered down from his nest above Harry's headboard and moved across the bed where he took an inquiring stance, with his lower half supporting his raised head. His tongue was flicking the air at a dizzying rate trying to glean any and all information that he could. He was prepared to transform into his alternate state to defend Harry if need be.

" _Cedric was almost ambushed in the hall as he came in from quidditch practice by the Slytherin team_." Harry said in a series of hissing noises that did little to allow Cedric the chance to relax. It wasn't that Cedric hadn't gotten used to Harry speaking parseltongue, because Kaa went with them on all of their expeditions throughout the castle and he and Harry would talk here and there. Cedric was just on edge and hadn't expected it the sudden change in sounds, although he should have by now.

Harry was unaware the effect that the conversation was having on Cedric and continued his explanation, starting at the beginning to fully fill Kaa in.

" _I was in the library with Neville and Hermione, studying, and Draco informed me that Cedric was in danger. I excused myself and checked the map and saw that Cedric was heading towards a trap and I had no time to warn anyone. I ran as fast as I could to get to him first and made it right before he rounded the corner to where they were waiting. From there, we ran in the opposite direction and barely had enough time to throw on the invisibility cloak after we rounded a corner. The cloak kept us hidden, but they almost discovered where we were standing as they explored the area to see where we could have gone. We waited there until after they had gone, and after curfew had started, before heading back here quietly, while still under the cloak_."

Cedric had taken a seat next to Kaa on the bed, as the longer that Harry talked in parseltongue, the calmer that Cedric had gotten. The rhythmic sibilant sound of parseltongue was oddly soothing to him after his initial shock had worn off. His mind returned to him and he remembered why they had come here: Harry was going to answer his questions.

Cedric looked up at Harry who had seemed to be finished with his explanation of the night's events to Kaa. Cedric then turned his head and found it comical that the snake seemed to be thinking about things. It took him a few moments before his rational mind corrected his initial thoughts: of course the snake could think if it could also speak!

As if on cue, Kaa produced a series of hisses that left Harry looking like he was being reprimanded.

" _I can see why you ran there without informing anyone, and I can see how the cloak was a good plan – but what if you had been discovered, young one? You would have been up against older students with more magical knowledge and gotten seriously hurt? I'm not saying what you did was wrong because Cedric is your friend; it's just I don't like it that you were almost hurt within this castle. I would prefer to accompany you outside of the common room from now on, even if you go exploring in the cold – I don't like thinking that something could have happened to you_."

Cedric guessed that Kaa had said something about Harry going off alone, but Cedric didn't know the whole story and he waited until they were finished before he started with his own inquiry to find out everything that had happened.

Harry looked down at the floor, feeling lucky that nothing serious had happened and recognizing the truth in Kaa's words. It would have been a shit-show if they had been discovered, but he didn't really have a choice in the matter; Cedric had needed someone right away. He probably would have done the same thing again, although he did resolve to learn magic as fast as he could. Especially with what was coming, he needed to be able to hold his own against older adversaries sooner rather than later.

He nodded his head at his bonded one, who lowered his head back to the mattress and slithered down the bedpost before disappearing underneath Harry's cloak. A moment later, his head reappeared near Harry's ear and he rubbed his head against his cheek.

Cedric took it as his cue that their conversation appeared to be over and caught Harry's attention.

"That was foolish running off by yourself… But I am thankful that you came to warn me, truly." His eyes spoke with a genuine sincerity. Despite having already thanked Harry, he had correctly read his body language during his conversation with Kaa and sensed he needed to know that, from Cedric's point of view, he had done the right thing.

"I just don't want you getting hurt either," he finished.

Everyone was lost in their own thoughts for a few moments before Cedric continued the conversation from the common room.

"You were telling me about your cloak, Harry. Where did you get something like that?"

Harry moved to sit down on the bed next to Cedric, bringing the cloak to rest on his lap. Kaa was peering down at the cloak from his perch around Harry's neck.

"It was my dads. It has been with the Potter's for a long time – I don't know how far it goes back."

Cedric reached for the cloak again and began to study it more closely this time. It was extremely lightweight, but also felt so sturdy. He supposed that it needed to be if it had been in their family for so long. It was a true magical work of art. He knew that most invisibility cloaks were quite temperamental and far from perfect, a way for people who could not disillusion themselves to disappear. They often failed to entirely hide the person or thing in question and its ability often deteriorated quite quickly.

Cedric stopped fondling the cloak and moved onto his next series of questions.

"So how did you know I was going to be ambushed? Were you just watching the map intently and put two and two together?"

Harry looked down. Of everything that had happened tonight, this was the most peculiar and hardest to explain. Malfoy had warned him – and he was no closer in understanding his motives. There wasn't much he could say, so he went with what he knew.

"Draco warned me in the library. He dropped me a note and it said that you were in danger." Harry shrugged.

Cedric's face scrunched up in confusion.

"Wait, you're telling me that Draco, as in Draco Malfoy told you?"

Cedric's mouth had not fully closed and his lower jaw was left dangling; it was quite comical.

Harry didn't know how he was going to explain this fully to him. Cedric was aware that they studied together on Saturdays and he had discussed his misgivings about The Malfoy Heir at the beginning of the year. But Harry wanted to bring Cedric up to speed on everything that had happened since then.

"Back in September, Draco approached us in the library and asked if we could all study together… and we have been doing so since then, every Saturday."

Cedric looked to be trying to take it all in, and he had managed the arduous task of closing his mouth.

"Now, at first, we thought it was just an elaborate set up, and Neville and I have been watching him closely since then; however, nothing ever came of it. In fact, after Christmas, Draco seemed different. He was even more friendly with us – but something must have happened because he changed. He was acting ever so slightly out of character at other times also, like in the Great Hall – but only if you paid close attention."

Cedric could only nod so far. Surely, this had to be an elaborate hoax or something on Malfoy's part.

"Neville and I talked during the last Quidditch match about this, and have been watching him. If I had to guess, I think Draco isn't like the rest of his family. Yet, I wouldn't be surprised if it turned out that we were being played. We are being cautious, especially given Neville and my family's history with that family and their associates, but he did warn me. I don't know if everything was planned, but I want to believe in Draco."

Cedric looked at the ground – so Harry had really thought about all of this.

"And, even if the whole thing was a setup, it doesn't make sense. He didn't know I had the cloak, or the map, or even a way to do anything to prevent the attack – I think Draco must have found out right before it happened and did his best to warn me."

Harry paused. He suddenly thought about something that he hadn't before. Why had Draco warned him about Cedric? They didn't hang out except out of Hufflepuff for the most part and they tended to not run into people when they explored the castle.

Cedric picked up on this.

"What is it, Harry?"

Harry turned on the bed and brought his left leg up and tucked it under his right leg.

"I was just wondering why Draco came to me – I don't think the school knows that we hang out a lot. He shouldn't know that we are friends. Or was I the only person in Hufflepuff that he could get the message to besides Neville?"

Cedric agreed with his assessment.

"That just leads to more questions. Blimey Harry, you would make a pretty good detective with reasoning like that. What are you going to do about it now?"

Harry honestly didn't know where to go from here.

" _Perhaps you should speak with him, young one. Be upfront and direct with him. I wish I could stare into his eyes, it could tell me something about his true intent; he is a hard one to read_."

Harry unconsciously relayed what Kaa had said to Cedric. It was a good idea, now he just had to figure out the best way to go bout it. And Neville would also want to know, Harry thought. He had questions about Draco's behavior and had witnessed the exchange between Draco and Harry in the library. Perhaps Neville could contribute to the discussion about Draco's motivation.

By this point, their minds had had more than enough time to acclimate to the night's events and they were ready and in need of sleep. Cedric bid Harry goodnight, along with Kaa, and retired to his own room.

Neither had a difficult time falling asleep; their bodies needed to recharge after all of the excitement and they had quite literally fallen asleep the moment their heads had hit their pillows. However, both would get little sleep that night because it was a school night and they had to be up early for class in the morning.

Harry caught Neville before breakfast and filled him in on the events of the previous evening. Afterwards, he had had the same concerns that Harry had, and was really demonstrating his ability to think deeply about an event and look at it from every side. They each spent the better part of the day thinking about how best to approach the situation now that most things had been considered.

In addition to thinking about Draco, Harry was unsure of whether to go to Remus about the incident with the Slytherins. He wanted to be able to handle his own problems, but he was also worried about his and Cedric's continued safety. In the end he decided against it figuring that if he couldn't handle a couple of despicable Slytherins, how was he going to handle Voldemort when he returned? However, that didn't mean that he and Cedric hadn't discussed alternative options. Cedric would alert his teammates to be careful and to travel in groups, and Harry would do the same. They made sure to surround themselves with people wherever they went.

Hufflepuff, as a group, had taken up the charge and most of the seventh years made sure to always keep Harry in their sights. On the few occasions where that wasn't possible, the fifth and sixth year prefects stepped up and would tail Harry to the library or other places that he went. But that turned out to be not quite necessary because his friends would hardly leave him alone – and Harry was grateful for their support. Not they a bunch of first years could have stood up against a group of older Slytherins, but it was the thought that counted. And he tried to remember that at times when he really wanted to be by himself.

It became amusing to catch the eyes of his would-be attackers at meal times and see their displeasure at having missed their opportunity at a surprise attack. Though, he was careful not to taunt them and kept a neutral facial expression because he wasn't a fool and didn't expect those Slytherins to just give up trying. It was clear that they had wanted Cedric incapacitated for the upcoming match between their houses, and who knew what other tactics they might resort to. Slytherins _had_ earned their cunning reputation for a reason.

However, it was tiresome constantly being with other individuals and Harry needed to get creative with using his cloak and timing his exit from Hufflepuff so that he could go see Remus. He wasn't that overly concerned about getting caught again, because he made sure to double-check his map at every opportunity. He was looking forward to advancing his own magical prowess so that others didn't need to constantly watch over him; he took it as a mini challenge before he faced the ultimate evil, Voldemort.

About a week and a half later, and a week before the Gryffindor/Ravenclaw game, Harry was in the library studying with his usual group. He had managed to speak to Draco briefly before then and thank him but hadn't had time to get into anything besides that. Now though, Harry was really curious and couldn't stand to observe and guess where his true intentions lay any longer.

He slipped Draco a note in much the same manner that Draco had used to warn him about Cedric.

 _Can we talk about last week?_

It took Draco a few moments for him to read the note and respond and hand it back to Harry without anyone else at the table noticing.

 _Where? It has to be in private._ _No one_ _can know._

Harry thought for a moment.

'Where can I take Draco? And in private – but I think Cedric and Neville would want to be there as well… Well, there is the top of the Astronomy Tower, but getting there would be hard – and I'm not bringing out the cloak. What about the secret passage out of Slytherin? I don't really want Draco to know about it if he turns out to be playing us – but there may not be much of a choice. Though, if I tell him about it, should I tell Neville? That means eventually Hermione would have to be brought on board, but Draco wouldn't talk if she was present.'

Harry decided to take a chance, and if Draco allowed Cedric and Neville to be there, then he would share the existence of the secret passage with Draco. If worst came to worst, Harry could have Remus or Snape ward the entrance from Slytherin's side so that they couldn't use it – Harry didn't want the rest of the school's common rooms to be infiltrated by Slytherin. But that was the worst-case scenario if Draco was playing them, and Harry took several moments to really consider the blond beside him. He turned briefly to look at Draco and they locked eyes for a fraction of a second. In the end, Harry went with his gut and hoped that it didn't come back to bite him in the arse.

 _Can Cedric and Neville be there? They can be_ _trusted_ _. I think I know a place._

It took Draco a while to think things over, but they weren't going anywhere and they had the rest of the afternoon to work in the library. Eventually, he responded.

 _Fine, but_ _no one_ _else. And they have to swear to keep it to themselves. Where and when?_

Harry refrained from sighing in relief. Hopefully, Draco would prove that he was justified with taking this risk and it that would pay off. He would have to confer with Neville and Cedric, but he didn't think that they would object to being a part of this.

 _Be alone in the Slytherin common room tonight at 12am. If there are people there, I will wait until you are alone._

Draco squinted his eyes in confusion and then quickly remembered there were other people sitting at the table with them, but he had no idea what Harry was thinking and couldn't really help himself. Hadn't he told him it needed to be in private and the Slytherin common room was hardly the place for that? He needed clarification.

 _You don't mean to have this discussion in Slytherin, and you are taking me somewhere else?_

Harry should have expected this. But he couldn't really explain this to him, and was also kind of looking forward to seeing the look on Malfoy's face when he revealed the entrance.

 _Yes, Draco_. _Trust me_ _. Please?_

Draco sighed slightly, and quickly made it seem like he was frustrated with the essay he was currently working on, but Neville finally noticed that something was going on – and he would be talking with Harry about it later.

 _Fine._

Satisfied, Harry returned his full attention back to the assignment at hand, while Draco was only partially focused on what he was working on. The rest of his attention was hoping that he was also making the right decision. If he couldn't trust Harry with this, whom could he trust? He supposed he had already committed to this route by warning Harry in the first place. To be honest, he didn't even know why he had done it – it certainly would have been easier to not get involved. It was like something had just compelled him to act against his Malfoy upbringing to think before one acted, but he was stuck now and would have to see this through.

The afternoon eventually winded down and they finished with their work just in time to head to The Great Hall for dinner.

Harry managed to catch Cedric's attention as they were leaving dinner to head back to the common room, and after saying their goodnight to Hermione, Harry and Neville walked alongside Cedric.

"You got a minute, Cedric?" Harry asked nonchalantly, not wishing to draw attention from the surrounding students by saying, 'Hey, we need to talk!'

Cedric slowed his gait, correctly reading his younger friend.

"Sure, what's up?"

"Stop by my room for a minute, trust me."

Cedric was intrigued, and really didn't have anything better to do. He was all caught up with his work, and figured that this would have something to do with their secret rendezvous that evening to head back into the secret tunnel. They hadn't gotten the chance to revisit it last weekend, as staying up so late during the week had adversely affected them and they needed the week to catch up on sleep. Well, Cedric needed it more so than Harry who always found that he needed less sleep than others.

The three headed towards Harry room and, once inside with the door shut, Harry moved to sit on his bed. Neville joined him and Cedric took the chair.

Harry started the conversation since he had asked them there.

"So, I talked to Draco in the library today. Well, I should say that I asked to talk to him in the library today about what happened last week."

Neville looked over to him.

"I knew something was up."

Harry nodded.

"I asked him if he wanted to talk, and he said yes. Although, he wanted it to stay between us."

Cedric and Neville were looking at him weirdly, both thinking something along the lines of, 'why are you telling us then?'

"I took this opportunity to see if I could get any closer to knowing his true intentions. I asked if you guys could be there. For one, I think he knows we are onto him Neville, and the other, well…" He gestured in Cedric's direction. Cedric would also want to thank Draco for the warning.

"My thought process was that if he was open to you guys being there, then I had just the place where we could talk _in private_." He looked to Cedric meaningfully.

Cedric straightened up in his chair while Neville was lost at that particular exchange. Though, he did agree it was probably wise for Harry to include Cedric and himself.

"Are you sure, Harry? We can't take this back once we show him. I'll admit I am curious as to his motives, but do you think we can trust him?"

Neville was thoroughly confused now and jumped into the conversation.

"Show him what?"

"We found something, Neville. Something amazing, and we will show it to you too. See, Cedric and myself have been exploring the castle."

He took out the Marauder's map. It was time that Neville be brought in on this whole thing, especially since their conversation during the last quidditch match. Harry had just needed a decent opening.

Cedric moved to stand closer to them so that he could see the map and Neville's reaction.

"Cedric knows about this because he was with me that first night when Ron's rat was caught. The same rat that turned out to be Peter Pettigrew."

Neville nodded, following along.

"This map shows everyone in the castle, look. I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Harry placed his wand in the middle of the map and watched Neville's eyes widen as it came to life.

"Wicked," was all that he could say. His eyes were too busy scanning the various hallways and rooms where names of people moved about.

"This was how I knew about Pettigrew; I saw him in Gryffindor with Ron and I went to Remus. I managed to run into Cedric on the way there and, well, he was with me that night while Remus and the Headmaster went to apprehend him."

Harry paused; he didn't want Neville to think anything bad about not being informed.

"Neville, only Cedric knows about this map, and we took to exploring the castle to see if there were any hidden passageways... My dad made this, along with Sirius, Remus, and Pettigrew when they were at Hogwarts. When they were all friends," he finished quietly.

"Don't think I was hiding this from you for any particular reason, and that.."

"It's okay, Harry. You don't have to explain," Neville interrupted before finishing, "I get it, and you are telling me about it now."

Harry could have hugged him; it saved him from an awkward explanation that really wasn't needed because he hadn't been hiding this from Neville.

"So, you found someplace that was hidden and you are taking us there with Draco to talk about why he warned you about Cedric?" Neville moved along the conversation, astutely putting everything together and getting the focus back.

Harry nodded.

"Tonight, at midnight. I told him to be alone in Slytherin's common room and that we would come for him."

Harry thought back to Cedric's earlier comment, never being able to get back to it until now due to explaining things to Neville. He looked up at the third year Hufflepuff.

"I think it is for the best, Cedric. At least, I feel like it is the right choice. I think he needs us, and I can't think of a good reason for Draco to allow you two to be there if he wasn't being sincere. And I can't think of any reason for why he warned me about Cedric, besides the fact that he didn't want to see him hurt."

Cedric took in what his friend had just said and found it hard to disagree with his reasoning.

"All right, Harry. I trust you, but I just hope this is the right decision."

It meant a lot to Harry that Cedric trusted him, and he knew what Cedric meant: he hoped that this was the right decision as well.

The group broke up to do their own thing until the time came to meet in the common room later that night. They hadn't told Neville what the secret they had discovered was, despite his pestering, because they wanted to see the look of shock on his face just as much as they wanted to see it on Draco's. Just thinking about three Hufflepuff's suddenly appearing in Slytherin's common room unannounced was enough to threaten Harry with a fit of giggles.

Harry spent his time reading some of the books that had started to come in about Runes. They weren't that informative for what he and Cedric were working on, but they did provide more theory on rune usage and interpretation. At least Harry wasn't completely wasting his time; at this rate, he thought he would be ready for his Rune OWL at the end of third year and was wondering whether he should even bother taking the class seeing as to how he was managing by himself.

He went down to the common room as midnight approached and was thankful that the only Hufflepuffs present were Cedric and Neville and that they wouldn't have to wait until the room cleared. 'Now, if only getting Draco could be this easy,' he hoped.

Harry led the other two boys over to where the secret entrance was and quickly opened up the passage while keeping his eyes focused on Neville, who didn't disappoint as his mouth fell open at the site before him. A part of him thought that he was dreaming because this couldn't have remained hidden all of these years. It just didn't make any sense.

Harry explained to him how he had stumbled upon this discovery by noticing that there was something amiss with the map and the layout of the room and quickly showed Neville what he was talking about. Cedric waited until Harry finished and Neville regained some of his composure and then lit his wand, leading the way through this tunnel that was getting more familiar to him with every visit.

The other boys, after Harry had sealed the entrance, had followed Cedric through the dank and cramped passageway. If Neville had been shocked at seeing where the entrance was, then he was beyond speechless at seeing where it led to; there was such history everywhere with the weapons and the ancient-looking cabinet. Although, Harry and Cedric forbad him from opening it because some of the potions had went sour and they were not particularly in the mood to relive those smells.

Harry and Cedric then explained how this room underneath of the infirmary was connected to the other common rooms and pointed to the three other tunnels next to the one that they had ventured through. As it was slightly passed midnight, they headed through the Slytherin tunnel to go and get Draco with Cedric once again taking the lead and illuminating the path ahead.

When they arrived at the end of the tunnel they descended the stairs this time because Slytherin's dormitories were on a lower level than Hufflepuff's. They reached the wall and Harry removed the map from his pocket and checked to see if Draco was alone, but unfortunately there were also two other students present. Cedric recognized the names as belonging to seventh years.

The three Hufflepuff's sat down and waited until Draco was alone. As luck would have it, only a few minutes later the older students left the common room and headed to their respective private rooms, leaving Draco all alone. It was interesting watching the dot labeled, 'Draco Malfoy, begin to move around the map, and Harry was imagining that Draco was most likely nervously pacing back and forth, and wondering what was going through his mind.

It suddenly occurred to Harry as he stood up and faced the wall that opening this entrance might be different from opening the Hufflepuff one, and the entire plan would be for naught if that was the case. After making sure that Draco was still alone, he tapped his wand in the same manner he was used to using and the wall slowly melted before his eyes. Since no sound had accompanied the bricks moving, Draco could be seen walking before the fireplace unaware of their presence.

A small smile graced Harry's lips as the reveal would be better than he could have hoped for.

"Draco," he whispered loudly.

Draco froze in front of the fire and then turned quickly to stare at Harry, with Neville and Cedric standing beside him beckoning him to walk towards them.

It took Draco a second to come to his senses and then he hurried toward the trio, his eyes darting around to make sure that no Slytherins saw him.

"Harry, what is this?" Draco furiously whispered in a clipped, but awed tone.

"Just come on in, Draco. Let's go before someone comes and we will explain everything." Harry's retort was equally short.

Draco rolled his eyes, gave one last look around and shrugged his shoulders before walking into the little alcove. Harry immediately put the wall back up and Cedric took his cue to lead the foursome back to the room, where they could talk more freely without worrying about someone else disturbing them.

Draco needed a few moments, just like Neville had, to explore the room before being able to communicate in a coherent manner. To be honest, this really was something that was pretty unexpected in a castle that dated back over one thousand years; you just didn't expect something like this to have remained hidden after all of these years.

Neville took some time to also explore more while Cedric and Harry talked quietly amongst themselves.

Eventually, after Draco had quickly explored his new surroundings, he turned to the rest of the group.

"What is this place?"

Harry and Cedric shared a look, and Cedric went on to explain their theory that it served as a base of operations so to speak and a great place to defend in case the castle was attacked.

Draco didn't find any fault with their reasoning.

"How long have you known about this?" Draco said looking around before finishing, "who else knows about this?"

Harry answered this time.

"I discovered it just before Christmas." His answer was short, and unlike his explanation with Neville, he was not going to show the map to Draco.

"And only the people standing here currently know about its existence."

They were all standing more or less in a loosely formed square and decided to sit down, seeing as how it was late, and Cedric's legs were tired from practice that day.

"So… Draco" Harry started. "About your warning, why?"

It wasn't the best way to get the conversation started, and Cedric interjected to make it not so accusatory.

"And what Harry means is thank you for what you did. We just want to know why you did it; it wasn't very Slytherin of you."

So sometimes Harry's style wasn't as tactful as it could be, and he amended his previous words.

"Yes, what he said, Draco. First and foremost thank you, it was a great thing what you did."

Draco could only shrug; he didn't know why he had done it.

"Honestly, I don't know why I did it. I guess I didn't want to see Cedric hurt, seeing as how he is your friend, Harry. I overhead some of the older Slytherin's talking about it right before they headed out Cedric and I went looking for you in the library."

That didn't really answer any of their questions, but it gave them something. They were no closer to understanding his motivation, though.

Neville was the one to speak up this time as Harry and Cedric were unsure of what questions they wanted to follow up with.

"Draco, is everything okay? I, well, Harry and I, have noticed that you have been different since coming back from winter holiday."

Harry looked over curiously at Draco, who had pulled his knees up to his chest so that he could rest his head on them.

"We are concerned, Draco. You have seemed to be going through something, and if there is anything that we can do – I guess we want to help."

Harry was rather surprised with those words that had come out of his mouth. But when he thought about them, he supposed that that was the reason for all of this. If Draco was really being honest with them, he wanted to help him because that was what friends did. Harry was ready and willing to be his friend, and Neville and Cedric were on the same page that he was.

Draco was unsure of what to do. He wanted to get out from under his father's shadow and oppression and be his own person, who was admittedly very different from what his father wanted him to be. But could he trust these people? Was he brave enough to decide his own fate? Could he even decide his own fate?

The only sound in the room was Draco exhaling loudly.

"I don't know, Harry. I'm surprised you want to help me, knowing who my father is and what he may have done in the past."

It was clear to everyone in the room that Draco was admitting the sins of his father.

"I know you and Neville have been watching me closely, and I would have done the same in your position. Most likely you have been thinking that I have been working to gain your trust only to betray it later?"

It was an uncomfortable nod that Harry gave in admitting Draco's summary, but it just wouldn't have been prudent of them to be anything other than suspicious of The Malfoy Scion.

"I get it, really – it's a smart thing to do when dealing with any Slytherin… But I'm not like my father, at least I don't want to be." Draco said candidly.

Once he had said it, there was no taking it back. He was sure that he would be dead if word of what he was doing ever became known. But Draco was putting his faith in the Boy Who Lived and his friends, and sincerely hoped that he wasn't damning himself.

The Hufflepuff's had immediately softened at Draco's words.

"But, I don't think you guys will ever fully trust my word, at least for a while. There is too much history between our families and our houses. My parents, well my dad mostly, has hurt you guys in some way through things done to your family members."

And Draco was right, and that was the suckiest thing. Harry was at least sure of Neville and Cedric being true friends, but it wasn't just because of Draco's family that he was slightly hesitant. He wanted to believe in Draco, but he had larger concerns to think of and needed to pick his friends wisely.

At this point in the conversation, Kaa communicated his two cents privately on the matter.

' _Let me see him young one, I know it is risky letting him know about me and your ability, but I want to look him in the eyes. It isn't a guarantee, but if we can help him, we should. And if not, at least we know. Your gift would eventually come out anyway and this could be used to persuade him from underestimating you._ '

Harry considered his bonded one's council.

' _I don't think I have a choice, Kaa. I think we are both holding onto cards that could clear the situation up and discover whether we really can be friends or not. I am just going to go with my gut on this one_.'

"Draco, I want you to meet someone. Don't be alarmed – he won't hurt you. He wants to meet you."

Draco was instantly on guard. He was slightly annoyed with Harry that he had let someone else in without informing him, and it left him feeling slightly betrayed and exposed.

Harry quickly added to his statement upon seeing Draco stand and look around the room nervously. He stood as well.

"No, Draco. It isn't a person, here."

He let Kaa down on the ground, letting the snake slither out his sleeve, and then he stood back up.

"This is Kaa, my friend. He wants to meet you."

"He wants to meet me?" Draco was confused. How did Harry know what the snake wanted, unless… No BLOODY WAY!

" _I am going to reveal my true form, Harry. Just to see his reaction and look into his eyes at his level. Please tell him that I mean him no harm_."

Draco couldn't believe his ears when he heard the snake hiss, and was even more in shock that Harry responded with equal noises. Harry Bloody Potter was a parselmouth!

'This is going to be interesting,' Harry thought as he looked upon the rare gaping mouth present on Malfoy. That had to be a first. He relayed the words from Kaa.

"Okay, everyone, don't be alarmed but Kaa is going to get a little bigger now. He isn't going to hurt anyone. In fact," " _Kaa, come here to me so that you are not alone and then change_."

The others were curious now, and watched the snake retreat towards Harry where he circled just barely around Harry's feet before doing something that they would never be able to get out of their minds.

A soft, green glow illuminated Kaa's form and all anyone could do was watch as he grew to a massive size that fully encircled Harry several times with his tail fully supporting his frame and his head resting on Harry's right shoulder. Harry had started to give off a slight glow himself by now and his eyes were shinning as if they were emeralds that had a light source behind them. In this moment, Harry was the epitome of power and beauty.

All of the blood drained from Draco's face as he took in this exceptional display of power and, as if in a trance, his eyes were directed to stare into Kaa's. He felt naked and exposed and quite like how he remembered his father training him in Occlumency. He had disliked someone else being inside his mind and had quickly learned to develop the skill to bock them out, but this was different and he was powerless to throw up his mental barriers. There wasn't the usual accompanying sensation of someone ruthlessly searching through personal memories; it was more like his worth as a person was being judged by something that he couldn't comprehend. And Draco stood resolute and allowed Kaa to do whatever it was he was doing.

For Draco, the sensation ended just as soon as it had begun and Kaa withdrew from his mind and started to shrink down to his more manageable size; however, he did remain around Harry's neck, and his body slowly climbed up Harry's form as it shrunk.

Cedric and Neville, who had stood up when Kaa had grown in size, let go of the air that they were holding and sank to their knees; it was a very impressive display of magic that they had just witness, and from a first year and his pet snake no less.

Harry and Kaa were silently staring at each other for a few moments, going over the information that Kaa had just obtained after peering into Draco's mind. It had been tiring on his energy levels, but the more that Kaa told him, the more he didn't mind this little side effect.

Draco couldn't believe what he had just witnessed – it was certainly something his father would love to know – and something that Draco would never willingly tell him.

"Draco," Harry interrupted the silence that had followed Kaa's display.

"It's okay. You can be honest with us. We are here to help and won't betray you. I will swear an oath to that effect if it would help."

The others just stared at him with blank expressions on their faces. What could Kaa have told Harry to make him willing to take any sort of vow?

Draco was more dumbfounded than the rest and was slightly unsettled by what Kaa could have told him; what had he seen in his mind? Normally, when a Legilimens was inside your mind and viewing your memories, you were aware of what ones were being seen. With Kaa, however, that hadn't been the case and Draco was unaware that Kaa had even looked at any of them.

"Harry, a vow? I don't understand, of all things, I should be the one to make a vow to you that I mean you no harm."

Cedric and Neville were interested in Harry's response because what Draco had said was more or less the truth of the matter.

Harry was looking at Draco like he had never truly seen him correctly before, and was taking in the other boy who was no older than himself but had been through things just as horrific as him or Neville.

"You don't need to take a vow, Draco. I may not know everything about you, but I know that you are different than your father and don't hold his views on everything. If push came to shove, I know you wouldn't support him or what he fought for alongside the Dark Lord."

The mention of Voldemort's name had alerted everyone to the seriousness in which Harry spoke and eased their own worries about Draco's allegiance.

"But why me, Harry? Why are you doing this for me?" Draco was stunned that Harry would go out on a limb for him, even though he had partially stuck his neck out there first. In the beginning he had just been following his father's orders, but now, did he consider Harry a friend? If he was being honest, then yes, he wanted to consider Harry a friend. But how could Harry help him with his situation?

"Because you are a good person, Draco. But more than that, I hope you are our friend. And friends should stick together and help each other if they can."

Draco was resigned to telling them what had pushed him away from his father now; Harry's acceptance deserved that and deep down, he was thankful for the bonds that were forming between him and the other boys. He could just feel that this was the start of something major, and he had a little bit of hope now, where none had existed before. He didn't see how it would fully help him out of his predicament, but it was something – and for Draco, in this moment, that meant risking everything.

And he dove right in.

"Over break, my father forced me to cast the Cruciatus."

Neville gasped and covered his mouth with his hand, tears forming in his eyes at the thought of the child before him being forced to commit the same act that had robbed him of his parents.

"And he cast it on me until I learned it. I tortured a muggle, and I knew I couldn't do anything to save him. I knew his fate from the moment I saw him, and I caused the last moments of his life to be hell and full of pain. I never want to go through that again; it was when I decided that I wanted something very different from what my father wants. But I don't know what to do about it, and I don't want you to think you can do anything about it. My father would kill me if he knew what I just said."

Kaa slithered over to Draco and rubbed his hand with his head while the other boys were stunned into silence. Neville had tears streaming down his face at this point; he could never have imagined someone so young being forced to do something so evil. He felt for Draco.

"Draco… I can't imagine what they must have been like. I don't think anyone here can." Harry said in a soft voice, holding back his own sorrow to be strong for Draco.

The others shook their heads in agreement.

"I don't even know what we can say, or should say. Except, I will be here for you. I will be your friend and will help in any way I can."

"Me too, Draco. I completely agree with Harry. I'm sorry." Cedric couldn't wrap his mind around someone younger than him being exposed to such violence.

Neville just went over to Draco and sat beside him, slowly reaching over to rest his hand on the blond's shoulder in a touching display of support and solidarity.

And Draco lost it; he fully and truly lost it. He could no longer hold back the tears that needed to flow. He didn't know what it was like to have people that he could open up to and be honest with and not turn their backs on you. He had never known that it was OK to not be strong all the time and show weakness. Everyone made their way over and they sat in a very close circle until all of their emotions had been let out.

Harry reached out his hand to Draco's.

"Friends," he said, very matter-of-factly.

"Friends," Draco reciprocated, extending his own hand to join with Harry's.

Cedric and Neville also joined their hands together in the middle and each exclaimed the same solemn, and one word vow.

And then something unexpected happened. Each had made the declaration with such honesty and intent that faint ribbons of colored light emitted ever so briefly from their joined hands and crossed and folded upon the many individual strands until a variety of colors circled their clasped hands before fading away.

It was one of those things that no one knew why it happened, and was just another mystery of magic. It had no real meaning or held any of them to a vow that they couldn't break. But in this moment, Magic had recognized the words of four people and let them know the truth in which it was spoken.

And it filled each of them with a warmth that was needed in this old and forgotten room, and each boy took it as a sign that no matter how bad things ever got – there would always be some part inside of them that would always remember this moment and that they were never truly alone.

* * *

Before anyone knew it, a week had passed and the Quidditch stadium was filled with cheers of support for their respective house teams. Gryffindor had started the game off strong; their strategy seemed to be that sheer will and determination would see them through this game, and so far it was working.

Though, Ravenclaw had been prepared for any style of play, but they were overwhelmed by the intensity of the players that they currently faced. It had shaken Ravenclaw and the team had not been able to recover and didn't even look like a team at the moment, it was as if a collection of individuals who owned brooms that were all dressed alike had just met each other for the first time. And their opposition was a well-oiled machine that quite literally was playing textbook quidditch, and within an hour Gryffindor had claimed victory with the first lopsided score of the entire season. They had won by two hundred points and suddenly, were sitting in first place and had changed everything. The atmosphere was verging on riotous and left quite a large section of the stadium in shock because a game so late in the season managed to affect the standings so much.

It was now a must-win situation for Hufflepuff if they wanted to earn a spot in the final; and it would be tough going up against Slytherin. Hermione was feeling the loss especially hard, never having experienced disappointment in every single match in rooting for a sports team, and all Neville or Harry could do was give her hugs and words of support. They made promises to catch up after dinner and she was thankful for the support and left them to mourn the losing season with her house.

Eventually the stadium emptied after Gryffindor headed towards the castle celebrating en masse, with Ravenclaw clearly dejected and Slytherins now suddenly looking at a very real possibility of not making the final for the first time in years.

Hufflepuffs were the last to leave the stadium leaving only their quidditch team, plus Neville and Harry who had remained with them. They were scheduled to have a practice after the game anyways and now they had more motivation than ever considering the changed standings.

Harry and Neville ran around the pitch as the team practiced above them, before tiring and laying on their backs as the team flew by overhead. It was a good thing that it was warmer out and they were enjoying themselves and talking about everything from classes to something funny that Draco had commented on during the week.

The practice ended and Cedric descended on his broom to join then, and offered the pair a chance to ride his Nimbus 2000. Neville was hesitant to give it a go, as he really didn't fancy being off the ground unless he was required to do so in class. Harry, however, was more than apt at trying his hand on a real broom. He had promised himself that he would purchase one for himself this summer as next year he would be allowed to bring his own to the castle.

Harry had enjoyed his flying lessons and was a natural on the broom, but this was the first time he had ever had free reign to do as he pleased. He was in love with the air in his face and it was as if the broom was a natural extension of his own body. He barely had to direct the room to change direction and had never felt more at ease in his entire life. He had no problem riding the changing wind currents and was finally doing tricks that he had always wanted to try without having to worry about Madam Hooch. Everyone left on the quidditch pitch just stopped what they were doing and watched him zoom across the sky and weave in and out of the goalposts. It was simply mesmerizing to watch someone so young be in that much control, and the funny thing was that Harry couldn't even tell anyone how he was doing this; it came to him as naturally as breathing in and out.

When he touched down on the grass, the entire team soon surrounded him.

"Blimey, Harry. I didn't know you could fly like that. Where did you learn it?"

Cedric was beside himself; he had never known that Harry was that talented and honestly thought that Harry was head and shoulders above him, despite all of his practicing. He just shook his head and chalked it up to something else that was amazing about his young friend.

Harry was slightly stunned by the reaction of those around him. To him, he had just gone for a quick ride and was just having fun and had let his instincts take over.

He really didn't know how he was supposed to respond.

"I was just having fun – I was just concentrating on how I felt up there – I can't really explain it. Why?"

The others were in slight disbelief: Harry didn't even know how good he was.

Cedric walked over to him and patted him on the shoulder.

"Harry, you were amazing. You could surely play as a seeker, or really any position with that skill." Cedric was being sincere and couldn't really feel any jealously towards Harry; he just didn't have it in him and couldn't explain why. He _should_ have been slightly resentful that someone who had hardly had any practice could fly circles around him, and he was considered a very good quidditch player to begin with.

Harry really respected Cedric and gladly took his praise, though he still didn't get the big deal about how he had flown. Playing quidditch and fooling around on a broom were two very different things as far as he was concerned.

It was decided that Harry would be a reserve seeker and he was invited to join them in practice the following week. Harry reluctantly obliged at Cedric's insistence; it would make getting all of his work done more challenging, but it was only for a week and he would get to spend more time with his friend.

They all walked towards the castle together and looking forward to food as it was approaching dinner and quidditch always increased one's appetite.

* * *

Meanwhile, while everyone had been at the game, in an unknown room in the castle, a large chest had just been closed that unknowingly contained the beautiful, long-lost diadem of Ravenclaw. It had been shrunk down and stowed in a bag before the straps had been placed around someone's shoulders before exiting the room of forgotten things and making its way towards Ravenclaw Tower.

 **Please let me know what think, and thank you very much for reading!**


	25. The End of First Year

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading! Second, here is the last chapter of his first year. I want to thank you all for sticking with this story throughout its beginning stages and I hope you like where I take it. It really means a great deal that anyone is reading this, let alone giving me a review, follow, or fav.

I wanted to give Harry a taste of Quidditch here, but I don't see how he could devote any time to it with everything else that he needs to focus on. It will certainly become less of a fixture in subsequent years as the plot progresses and his attention is directed elsewhere, but there was a reason for me writing it.

As always, I really appreciate the feedback I have gotten and encourage you to tell me what works and doesn't.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; I am so thankful for JKR and all that she did for us. She gave us one of the greatest gifts, and so many people have taken to this site and played brilliantly with her creation. We should have a JKR day and it should be a global holiday!**

* * *

One week. That was all it had taken to convince Harry that there was no way he was ever playing Quidditch for his house team ever again. For during that those three mandatory practices he had barely managed to finish all of his homework before the match on Saturday while also keeping up with his hour-a-day studies devoted to preparing himself for defeating the Dark Lord.

Even though part of his increased workload was because of having to do his Saturday homework during the week, he knew he would never be able to sustain that amount of effort, unless he didn't want to see Neville or Hermione ever again.

The only good thing about his hectic week had been that he was able to spend quit a fair bit of time with Cedric. But even those moments were not enough to make him consider ever making this arrangement permanent.

In his mind Harry was merely been polite with accepting the week-long offer he had received from the captain to practice with them before their hopefully non-final match against Slytherin; however, in no uncertain terms, he had made it clear that this was something that he would not be pursuing next year.

Cedric was a little bummed when Harry had said that because he thoroughly enjoyed the time that he spent with him, but was partly relieved that he wouldn't have to worry about losing his spot on the team – though that was a very small part of how Cedric was feeling.

Nonetheless, the day of the match finally arrived, bringing with it a beautiful late April air that was crisp and refreshing. It heralded that spring had arrived and that summer was just around the corner. The Hufflepuff Quidditch Team, and Harry, ate breakfast together at one end of their house table in the Great Hall. They were nervous and excited and it took them some time to be able to eat any significant amount of food, which they would need to be able to play at their best. This was the day that would determine whether they moved on to the final match for a chance to play for the Quidditch Cup.

Harry was the only one at the table that resembled his normal self, as he wasn't playing he didn't have any of the pressure that the others had on their shoulders. In fact, Harry would be sitting with Neville and Hermione in the stands and watching what was no doubt going to be a thrilling afternoon. The only way that Harry would see game time was if something happened to Cedric – and Harry didn't particularly care for thinking such thoughts and so he didn't.

It was rare for teams to have reserve players to substitute in during a match and they were only allowed if a player was injured. This was because it took a great deal of time to practice with the team on the off hand that you were needed. Now, if a player was injured before a match then it usually wasn't that difficult to find a replacement that could train in time for the next game.

And so Harry was the only one that had any real appetite that morning and wished his fellow housemates, who he had gotten the chance to know more in the past week, good luck that day before heading over to where Hermione and Neville were standing.

Harry watched as the team stood up to applause from the rest of his house as they made their way down to the quidditch pitch. The Slytherin team followed soon after. A half an hour later found the whole school marching towards the stadium, and Harry and his friends joined Hufflepuff's unofficial cheering section.

The trio watched as the teams made their way out of the changing rooms and then began shouting in support of their team along with the rest of the spectators. The usual hush followed as Madam Hooch met the captains and laid out the well-known ground rules to the players.

A nervous and excited energy then bristled throughout the air and ignited to a full-blown cacophony once her whistle sounded and the quaffle was released alongside the all-important snitch. Players took to the air with a feverish determination, and Harry couldn't help but follow Cedric's every move as he hunted for Hufflepuff's ticket to the final.

It soon became apparent what Slytherin's approach to this game would be: since they had failed to prevent Cedric from being able to play, they resorted to try and unseat him from his broom at any and all cost. The beaters were hardly paying attention to the other players and focused their bats solely towards the seeker. Normally, the beater's role was to try and spread out the attacks and disrupt the attention and flow of everyone on the opposing team. By focusing all of their attention on one player, Hufflepuff's chasers were doing very well in holding their own and had even scored a few goals in the opening moments of the match. However, Cedric soon found himself dodging bludger after bludger and had given up trying to look for the snitch in his attempt to survive from one moment to the next.

Shouts and jeers against Slytherin's strategy were soon heard from three-quarters of those in attendance. Harry was too nervous to put any effort into speaking or shouting and instead remained glued to his friend's daring game of avoidance-bludger. His hands were clenched over his mouth and his prayers had turned from hoping for a win to just letting Cedric come out of this game unscathed.

After ten minutes of play, Hufflepuff was up seventy points to twenty – but Cedric was losing ground and energy. He had gone from swerving with plenty of time to spare to barely managing to dodge out of the way. A few times he had even been grazed by the bludger but his mind didn't even have time to focus on the bruises that he already had as the next bludger screamed towards him.

Eventually, there came a time when he was just a fraction of a second too late and the bludger collided with his head and he was knocked unconscious.

Gasps from all around were heard as the third year went limp and fell several stories to the ground. His impact with the hard ground below was softened through the use of charms that cushioned the otherwise disastrous effect of falling from tens to hundreds of feet in the air.

The game was paused by Madam Hooch and Madam Pomfrey took to the field at once and began casting the moment she arrived at Cedric's unresponsive body. Harry's face reflected a look of sheer terror and heartache before a brief pain tore into his side. Harry turned to Neville who had elbowed him rather strongly while they both watched the scene unfold before them.

"Harry – you better get down there. I don't think Cedric's is going to rejoin this match any time soon."

Harry closed his eyes for a moment, disbelieving that this moment could get any worse. But it had because he was the reserve seeker, and he would therefore have to play.

"Shit," he uttered in a broken manner, as Cedric was magically carried off of the field and play resumed.

How was he supposed to think about Quidditch when he didn't know how his friend was doing?

He didn't have all that long to sit there and contemplate every little detail because Neville was practically dragging him towards the changing room. Harry would have to hurry and get changed to give Hufflepuff an outside shot at winning this match. With no seeker, Hufflepuff was assured of a defeat because Slytherin could always postpone catching the snitch unless it would ensure them a place in the final. With a seeker, there chances were still low, as Harry was an unknown factor, but they were now better than zero.

Neville tried to give Harry an encouraging pep talk as they made their way down the stairs and through the bowels of the stadium towards the locker room.

Harry was in another mental place, however, and was only able to catch every few words while changing into a spare uniform that magically sized to fit him.

"Harry… will… fine… worry… best… win… Slytherin… safe… you."

Harry came out of his anxiety-induced stupor for a brief second before he was about to enter the pitch and looked at Neville with a somewhat coherent mind.

Harry was taking as many deep breaths as he could and wasn't able to articulate any of his thoughts to Neville. He wasn't entirely sure of how he was feeling, anyways.

" _I would prefer not to fly, Harry. Leave me here with Neville. You will be fine, Calm down. Breathe. Give me to Neville_."

Kaa's hissing helped to focus Harry somewhat and allowed him to explain to Neville that he was leaving Kaa with him. A Quidditch game was no place for a snake.

Neville seemed better at handling this situation and nodded at Harry before bravely letting Kaa slither into his robes and circle around his wrist. Neville tried his best not to focus on the venomous snake and instead led Harry in the direction of the field.

Harry stood there looking up at the players above him and the people in the stands, and felt like he was being judged on an incredibly large level. The Hufflepuff captain saw him standing with Cedric's broom clenched in his hand and called for a timeout.

His team descended around him and Madam Hooch was not far behind.

"What's this, a reserve?" The dragon-eyed force asked.

The captain nodded.

"Yes, Madam Hooch. Harry Potter will be subbed into the game for Hufflepuff."

She nodded and flew to inform the commentator of what was occurring.

Harry was in a daze. Everything had happened and was happening so fast; he had gone from looking forward to being a spectator, to sitting on the edge of his seat watching Cedric fly from a bludger, to worrying about his friend before being shocked into action.

"You'll be fine, Harry. There is no pressure. Without a seeker we lose, but with a seeker… well, anything is possible. Just try your best and pretend like it is just another practice."

The captain, a strong sixth year who put Quidditch above all of his other responsibilities, in this moment was being supportive and nurturing to his only hope of getting out of this mess. Gone was the manic drill master who pushed his team to their absolute limits – he knew enough of the game to know that for him to get anything out of Harry during this match, he would need to take a softer approach with him.

Harry just nodded at him, too nervous of spilling the bile that was threatening to come up to open his mouth.

The team took to the air and play resumed with a few squeals and gasps from the crowd.

Lee Jordan was in announcer heaven and couldn't believe his luck.

"Will you look at that; Harry Potter takes over the position of seeker for the injured Cedric Diggory who was injured during the disgusting and revolting play of Slytherin's…"

"Lee, that is enough!" McGonagall's voice roared.

"Right, Professor. Play resumes as Hufflepuff looks to regain the form they started out with," before adding in a softer, but still audible, "you know when Slytherin was being unfair…"

"Mr. Jordan!" her voice sounded again.

"ly judged for playing unfairly. I meant to add that, Professor. Honestly!"

McGonagall had a reputation for being fair, and she was concentrating on her ingrained habits in favor of worrying about her Harry take to the air for the first time.

While Harry flew about searching for the snitch and slowly building his confidence up in his flying abilities and gaining more control over the situation he found himself in, Remus and Sirius's faces had never recovered from the shocking reality that their Harry was playing too. However, as much as the pair would have been overjoyed in seeing Harry follow in James' footsteps, their parental instincts were worried that he would end up hurt like Cedric had instead. They had never entertained the idea that he would actually play a game under these circumstances.

The longer that Harry was in the air, the less everything else affected him. The wind against his cheeks shielded him from thinking about the crowd below. Harry needed to focus now and his mind slipped into Occlumency mode, with his sharper mind considering only the task that was before him and holding everything else at bay. He no longer agonized over Cedric's injury or where he currently was because the only thing that he was directing all of his consciousness to was a little golden ball with hummingbird-like wings.

His instincts took over and he rode through the wind currents and zipped around the other players in daring fashion to those in the stadium that couldn't take their eyes off of him. To them, Harry Potter was flying with such skill and nerve that it rivaled professional players and the loud sounds that they had been making only moments before were replaced by mouths unable to produce any sound at all. They were wondering how a first year had gotten so good without any apparent effort.

And Harry would agree with their assessment; he couldn't explain his flying abilities. They were something that came from deep inside him and he felt as if his body were being controlled by something else.

The score had now gone in Slytherin's favor and Hufflepuff was behind by five goals when Harry caught a glint of light reflecting behind his opponent's goalpost. He rolled into a spin as he spiraled through the dense chaser activity and righted himself to sounds catching in people's throats at what he had just done.

He raced towards his goal and his Occlumency-induced tunnel vision only cleared when his fist closed around the golden ball that sent tingles shooting up his arm.

The stadium seemed to let out a collective breath before the tumultuous and joyous screams from Hufflepuff and their supporters bathed out the disappointing jeers and angry-shouts from Slytherin. Hufflepuff had one it; somehow they had beaten Slytherin and would now face Gryffindor in the final match. Remus and Sirius had come to their senses and were standing and jumping up and down, not at all concerned about how others would view them. They were beyond overjoyed at what they had just witnessed and made them both feel as if James had been in their presence for a brief moment.

They were also tremendously relieved that Harry had come out of this unscathed.

Harry's team circled around him in the air and they all became an entangled mass that slowly fell to the pitch in each other's arms. The spectators rushed at them and soon a very large crowd of black and yellow with the occasional odd color thrown in were chanting, "Hufflepuff! Hufflepuff!"

Neville's arms were soon around Harry and it took Kaa several moments before he could surreptitiously rejoin his bonded one.

He hissed words of joy and congratulations and he kept Harry company as they made their way back to the castle. It looked like Hufflepuff would now be busy well into the night again celebrating another unexpected triumph.

But the celebrations took a pause when they entered their common room and Cedric's absence began to become noticed. The crowd then moved to head out and storm the infirmary when the captain voice rose above all of the others.

"I think only the team should go, not everyone will fit in the infirmary and we all know how Madam Pomfrey would love that."

The crowd laughed, but he did have a point; Madam Pomfrey would chase them out for daring to disturb the recovery of one of her patients.

The team, plus Harry, ventured out then to check on Cedric. It was the first time since he had seen Cedric fall that his fear and worry had returned to him. He had been overcome with the rush that came with flying and the exuberance of catching the snitch that his mind allowed the congratulatory cheers and support of his house to move aside any worry about his friend's health. He felt partly ashamed of how long it had taken him to think of Cedric, and by the looks on the faces of his teammates, he wasn't alone.

The group arrived with heavy spirits as they slowly entered the infirmary and met with Madam Pomfrey.

She knew why they were there; it was obvious considering that their outfits matched the one that Cedric had been wearing.

"He will be alright," she said quickly while reassuring them with calming hand movements.

"Took a nasty hit to the head and will most likely be out until tomorrow, but nothing to worry about – he'll have a bump for a few days, but that's about it. His own magic had already started the healing process when I arrived."

Everyone visibly calmed at that and started moving forward to where Cedric was lying on his back, his hair partially covered in gauze.

Harry didn't like the feeling that settled in his gut upon seeing Cedric so motionless. Gone was his smile and life in his eyes, and he only wanted to hear the smooth voice that he had grown overly fond of. The team paid their respects quietly before leaving him in the capable hands of Madam Pomfrey.

The walk back to their common room was striking in its absence of sound. The reality of seeing their teammate unable to celebrate this historic occasion with them was hard for them to bear. They had reached this point together, and they wanted to be able to celebrate together.

The party that night was more muted than past victory celebrations, but food and drink were again provided by the elves. The Puffs stayed in the common room and kept their victory to themselves again, while Harry found himself to be the center of everyone's attention after Cedric's absence had been adjusted to. People were clamoring to know how he had flown that well and with such precision.

Harry was thankful that Neville was with him to shield him from a lot of the attention because in truth he didn't know how to respond. He knew he had a talent for flying, but it was very instinctual, and he could never find the right words to properly describe it. Time passed quite quickly that night and everyone was worn out slightly earlier than usual considering it was a Saturday night. Soon, Harry found himself alone with Neville slightly after eleven.

They were both sitting by the remnants of the fire and each was nibbling on some of the leftover food.

"You going to bed soon, Harry?" Neville inquired after a yarn as he stretched his legs out before him.

"You have to be exhausted after everything that happened today."

Harry moved his head up and down in agreement.

"I think I'll sit here for a few more minutes and then head to bed."

Harry continued to stare into the embers; he was still able to appreciate the warmth they gave out.

"I'm looking forward to a lazy day – though with finals approaching, a little revising might be good. I doubt Hermione will do anything but revise at this point."

Neville chuckled at that very accurate statement.

"Hermione is overzealous when it comes to studying, even when we know she will do fine _and_ she knows that she will do fine."

Neville looked at him seriously for a moment.

"Harry, I'm not even worried about these exams – not with all of the work we have put in throughout the year. I mean, I am even looking forward to some of them – and not just Herbology, but Potions too! How can she be so worried?"

Harry just shrugged at Neville; he didn't think Hermione could help herself. Studying was just something that Hermione would likely never grow out of, probably because it comforted her to know that she was doing everything she could do.

Neville continued shaking his head in confusion over their friend and patted Harry on the shoulder before calling it a night.

Harry remained in the chair for a couple of minutes before standing up and heading towards his room when a random thought entered his mind as he passed the hidden entrance.

He thought for a moment before retrieving the map from his room so that he would be able to exit from the tunnel later and unseen. He made sure that everyone in Hufflepuff were in their rooms, or at least away from the common room, and then quickly opened and then closed the door after he had ventured inside.

A short while later Harry exited and unconsciously headed over to a spot that was directly under where Cedric was in the infirmary. Harry sat down and let Kaa down so that he could roam around free and laid the map fully open at his feet. The floor was not dirty anymore as the boys had made sure to remove the dust and had even brought a few cushions so that they wouldn't have to sit on the hard floor.

At this hour, Hogwarts was fairly uneventful and everyone was in his or her room. The only movement that Harry could discern was from where the teacher's quarters were. It suddenly occurred to Harry that the Marauders would have needed the map to be in those places in order to have them show up on the map. He didn't want to know how his … father and his parents, Sirius and Remus, had managed to get into each and every faculty member's apartment. It was quite disconcerting to think about sneaking into McGonagall's quarters and he wondered if they ever served detention for their exploits. He made a mental note to ask Remus about it later.

Some of the feelings of separation and loss at not being able to celebrate Hufflepuff's triumph with Cedric lessoned somewhat as Harry thought about the fact that Cedric was right above him. If he concentrated hard enough and let his mind feel the space around him, he was able to feel the trace of whatever tingle would spark between them. It comforted him and he longed to have him in his presence once again; Harry was finding his friends, and Cedric especially, becoming a part of his everyday life so much that he was acutely aware of when they were not there.

Feeling partially alone and isolated with these thoughts, despite the presence of Kaa who had wriggled back onto his wrist, Harry gently leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. He was determined to focus on how what he was feeling was a reflection of all the good things that he had going on in his life, and it was because of this that he was feeling a little low.

And without meaning to spend more than a half hour on the floor, Harry succumbed to the drowsiness and began to dream. Meanwhile, right above him, Cedric was also dreaming under the influence of the potions that Madam Pomfrey had given him to combat his concussion.

… _The sun was warm; his skin was absorbing all of the heat that it could as he lay on the grass under a clear blue sky. His hands were grasping at something that was giving off even more heat, but it was not uncomfortable. There was a familiarness to the sensation that was coursing through his hands that could instantly soothe any fear or worry that he might have._

 _A spectacular sound that penetrated into the very depths of his being reverberated throughout the colored landscape, his companion's laugh filling his heart with joy. He attempted to open his eyes and put a face to that laugh that he would never tire of hearing but his vision was off and before him was only an abstract shape. But he didn't worry about it, nothing felt abnormal. In fact, he was in a state of bliss. The chirping of birds could be heard in the distance and a cool wind was kissing his warm skin where the sun had lingered a little too long._

 _He moved his head to rest against the boy besides him and inhaled the delicate and enticing fragrance; it reminded him of summer, perfect and refreshing, and of fresh wood being cut just after drying from a heavy rain. He sighed with a contentment that he had never known and never wanted to live without. He never wanted to leave his companion's presence._

 _Eventually, the sun started to fade into the horizon and things became hazier and more difficult to distinguish. He tried to move closer into the other boy's arms and found himself drifting off into nothingness…_

Cedric blinked a few times as he opened his eyes. His brain was trying to process the room in which he found himself, unable to remember how he had gotten here or even the last place he remembered being. He was groggy though comfortable, and had just had a most wonderful dream. It was difficult to describe; in fact, he couldn't think of what it had been about and was just on the tip of his tongue but he couldn't get to it. He returned to thinking about his current situation.

He supposed that the last thought he had was of eating breakfast in the Great Hall. From there what had he done?

'QUIDDITCH!' He thought furiously to the point that he almost snapped his neck as he quickly went from lying peacefully on his back to sitting upright and scanning the room for someone, anyone, that could answer his many questions.

Madam Pomfrey ran over to Cedric after hearing the commotion from inside her office.

"Mr. Diggory, you will injury yourself further. Relax; it's okay. You are going to be fine."

She figured that he was confused as to why he was there, which he was – but he cared more about what happened to the game.

'I must have been knocked unconscious,' he thought to himself as bits and pieces of the game flashed through his brain. He was beginning to remember how many bludgers he had managed to dodge and now assumed that he had simply been hit by one. Did that mean that Slytherin had won? Had Harry been substituted for him? How long had he been out?

"Madam Pomfrey," he looked up at the stern but motherly figure looming over his bed, "how did the Quidditch game go?"

She rolled her eyes at him. Only teenagers could be more concerned over a game than their own health.

"I wouldn't have the faintest idea. I brought you back up the castle at once to treat you. Foolish game, Quidditch."

She shook her head and scanned over Cedric with her wand.

"Half of the people that come in here are because of that sport – if it was up to me I would find a way to make it safer. Or ban it entirely," she added as she picked up a quill and wrote something down in Cedric's chart.

Cedric was stunned; how could she not know the outcome of the match? He looked at her like she had lost all of her marbles.

After several minutes of additional scanning and ramblings about the dangers of Quidditch, Cedric was released from her care with instructions on taking it easy for the rest of the day. He was informed that he should return to her at once if he felt off.

Cedric walked slowly until he was certain that he was out of her view and then hightailed it to Hufflepuff, desperate to hear about the match.

He practically burst into the common room and was met with a stunned silence before clamoring and applause broke out.

"Cedric, you're alright!" was the only thing he could pick out among many people that were surrounding him. Some of the members of the Quidditch team were mulling about besides him.

"We did it!" They explained, to Cedric's amazement.

"Harry caught the snitch and we are in the final – I mean how are you feeling? Will you be able to play?"

There was sheer joy and happiness in everyone's eyes, not only had they won at Quidditch but also because Cedric was now okay.

'Harry did it, he caught the snitch,' he chuckled to himself. Of course his Harry had caught the snitch.

His Harry? Where had that come from?

He pushed that thought aside and allowed himself to focus on the grand retelling of the match after he had been taken out. Though, they did fill him in on how his injury had occurred since Madam Pomfrey had only focused on what she had done after he had been knocked unconscious. He sat there in rapt attention as their triumph over Slytherin was woven into this grand tale that had everyone reliving what had most definitely been one of the highlights of each and everyone's year.

"But don't worry Cedric, you will play in the final. Harry said one game was more than enough for him – he much rather prefers to watch the game rather than be in it. Also, he reiterated that you were the primary seeker and far better than him, not that we tried to replace you. I mean, after his spectacular flying it crossed all of our minds. You should have seen it Ced, it was incredible!"

The captain had rambled on too much, but it was fine. Cedric knew that Harry could easily take the spot if he wanted to, as he was the superior flyer. But Harry didn't believe that for whatever reason.

Cedric looked around the room for Harry but he couldn't find him.

"Harry and Neville are in the library."

Nearly everyone laughed at that. It was rare for Harry not to be in the library at least at some point during the day and it was a well-known fact in Hufflepuff. It was also known throughout the school just how much Harry excelled in the classroom, and people respected his quiet intelligence and non-flashy personality. He didn't need to be the star, but at the same time it was hard to deny that he was anything but special.

And not everyone in the castle considered that to be a good thing.

Cedric eventually was allowed to leave the common room and went looking for Harry to hear about how things had gone from his perspective. Cedric knew how much his first game had reduced him to a ball of nerves and he wanted to make sure Harry was handling the experience all right.

After catching up with Harry, Cedric hunkered down in his room to begin preparing for finals and drew up a schedule to make room for more Quidditch practices and revising for his exams. Cedric wasn't worried though; he was very diligent in fulfilling his responsibilities. He was more than excited at getting to play for the Quidditch cup with his team, but he knew he couldn't neglect his studies. He didn't want to play the game forever and knew that he needed a solid foundation for his later years in Hogwarts and beyond. His saving grace would be that the final match would be two weeks before the exams, leaving him plenty of time to make sure that he kept up his academic reputation. He may have to forgo his Sundays with Harry for a little while, but they would be able to resume them next year. Perhaps they could even catch up over the summer, he would have to talk to Harry about keeping in touch during the break from school like he did with his other friends.

* * *

In the seventh year suite of Ravenclaw, Brianne Coughlin was suffering through a tutoring session with the second year, Cho Chang. Brianne was a Muggleborn witch and very smart. She was the top of her year and had ambitions that would place her very high within the Ministry; however, she was handicapped by her blood status and lack of connections. In her fifth year, she had cottoned on to the uphill struggle she would face after she graduated and began to apply herself to overcome that handicap in anyway that she could think.

She began to tutor Ravenclaws that had prominent parents in the Ministry that perhaps she could use as a recommendation or a leg up when she applied for her dream job of working in the Department of Mysteries. She devoted most of her free time to networking with those students that offered her the best shot at succeeding later in life and this was the reason that she currently found herself holding her tongue at the idiot second year in front of her.

The only reason that she even endured the disaster that was Cho Chang was because her mother worked in the very department that she sought to apply to. Cho was an average student and could be labeled as intelligent when she put in the required effort to study, but Brianne thoroughly questioned why she was sorted into Ravenclaw.

Brianne was sacrificing precious time that she needed to expertly revise for her NEWTs. She was confident in her abilities and expected at the very least an E in every subject, but she strived for as many Os as she could get.

Her study session with Cho was interrupted when someone knocked at the door.

"Brianne, there is a first year that just broke into hysterics about finals in the common room. All of the other Prefects are in the library, can you come down for a moment?" One of the fourth years that Brianne was on friendly terms with asked.

'Almost done with this crap,' she sighed to herself.

"Keep working on those potion ingredients, Cho. When I get back we can go over the properties of their combinations again, okay?" She looked over at the black-haired girl.

Cho nodded absentmindedly, her mind focusing on her crush, Cedric, and his luscious brown hair. He was the epitome of a dreamboat, in her opinion.

Brianne walked over and exited the room, leaving Cho sitting on her bed not even pretending to study. Cho looked around curiously, wondering if there was anything juicy or informative hanging around the room that the older girls shared.

She quietly paced around the room and peaked into this and that but hadn't found anything interesting until she returned to Brianne's bed and happened to catch sight of a satchel shoved under her bed.

Curious, she went to see if there was anything of note inside and pulled out a small chest. She stared at it for a moment before reasoning it was possibly shrunk down as it was beautifully ornate and it wouldn't make sense to have something so intricate be so small. Who would do such a thing?

She tapped it with her wand and her greedy eyes smirked as it enlarged, and practically chortled as she opened it to reveal what was quite literally, treasure.

Having had experience with pilfering odds and ends from her housemates, she took a little of what was inside and placed it within her own bag. Not enough to notice that anything was gone upon a quick glance, but leaving Cho with more than enough trinkets to satisfy her kleptomaniac tendency to borrow the loose odd or end.

She quickly shrunk the box back and placed it under the bed in the exact position in which she had found it; she had experience with these things and knew the best way to go about leaving things unnoticed.

When Brianne had returned to the room, she resumed her session with Cho and would remain unaware of the horrible death that Cho had inadvertently saved her from.

* * *

The Quidditch final lived up to everyone's expectations. It was everything that any Quidditch fan could hope for and had delivered on all fronts. In the end, Hufflepuff had squeaked by with the snitch and with the Cup. Gryffindor had lost, but they weren't as dejected as they normally would have been in this situation. The had managed to fight their way back from a humiliating season and earn a birth in the final with only a single victory and would end above their arch rivals in Slytherin. They had given it everything they could have and each member of the team had left the field with their head held high knowing that they couldn't have done anything different. On this day they had simply been outplayed.

Hufflepuff was quieter in their victory than one would expect. A large part of that was because they were in stunned disbelief that they had actually done what they had dared to hope for the entire season.

The party that night was still riotous and loud and went on far into the night, but it was different; more hugs were exchanged and slaps on the back were frequent. Each member of their house had contributed to the victory in some way, whether through playing or supporting those on the brooms. But it was also bittersweet because it was the end of the season and getting close to the end of the year. All of those friendships and bonds would soon be tested as exams were taken and everyone went home for the summer. Hufflepuffs were also more closely knit than the other houses, but this year they became more like a family. They had achieved highs and lows, but in the end they would always have each other's backs and support one another.

The following days were difficult for them and for the rest of the school to adjust to. For now, they needed to buckle down and finish revising and prepare to take the dreaded exams that for some could dictate the rest of their lives.

And like most things, for some it dragged on and for others it flew by. Harry was thankful that he was in the group that it seemed to blur by at the speed of sound. However, he was well prepared and was more than ready to admit that he had achieved full marks on almost every question. He was pleased with his performance and looked forward to the future and the magic that he was bound to discover. He resolved to spend the summer advancing his studies and focusing more on the Voldemort issue along with some of his other interests.

Saying goodbye to his friends had been hard, but they had made plans to keep in touch over the summer and he had even accepted Draco's offer to visit Malfoy Manor. Although, he imagined that Sirius and Remus would be accompanying him.

His blossoming friendship with Draco and the trust that was growing between them really highlighted just how magical a friendship could be between people from very different backgrounds if they were allowed to develop naturally. Harry could only hope that their bond would strengthen a lot more before it would undoubtedly be tested by the extenuating circumstances that were bound to manifest themselves at some point.

His friendships with Neville and Hermione were much easier and he had little doubt at how easy it would be to keep in touch and they had already planned multiple things to do in both the muggle and the magical world. He was looking forward to the times he would have with them and was glad that he wouldn't have to be apart from them for long.

On Harry's last night in the castle before everyone departed on the train, though Harry would again return to Grimmauld Place with Remus through the floo, Cedric knocked on his door just as he finished packing the last of his possessions.

Harry opened the door and looked at Cedric who had a big grin on his face.

"Busy?" Cedric asked nonchalantly.

"Not really, just finishing packing. And I am leaving later than the rest of you, so I can always finish in the morning. What's up?"

Cedric's grin grew even wider.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to take a walk with me. I think there is something that you would like seeing."

Harry eyed him suspiciously, wondering what on earth this could be about.

"Sure, do I need my map and cloak?" Harry asked as he went to retrieve them. It was just second nature at this point to not leave his room without them. While he was busy removing them from his nightstand, Kaa slipped around his wrist. The snake was determined to not let Harry walk about alone at this hour, even if it was with Cedric.

Cedric asked if he could use the map because he wanted this to be a surprise for Harry and with a slight roll of his eyes Harry handed it to him. Though, on the inside, Harry was doing cartwheels that Cedric had planned something special for him. It was also nice to have someone do something unexpected to show you how much you meant to them.

Harry let Cedric lead the way and he was carefully holding his cloak and ready to deploy it at a moments notice should a teacher be walking the halls at this hour.

They walked in silence for a few moments towards the heart of the castle before Cedric stopped and turned to look at Harry.

"Now, close your eyes." Cedric said in his rich and smooth voice.

Harry again obliged him and shut his eyes tightly.

"Do you trust me," Cedric said in a near whisper.

Harry nodded his head.

"Of course I do."

Harry was momentarily startled when he felt his friends hands grab onto his shoulders and guide him to wherever Cedric's intended destination was.

Harry's heart was beating wildly, he didn't know what to expect or what was going to happen.

They came to a halt after walking around fifty paces or so, just enough to give Harry some ideas as to where they could have gone.

"Open them," Cedric beckoned proudly as he released his hands from Harry's shoulders and stood next to him.

The first thing that Harry noticed was a plethora of trophies and plaques that were mounted to the wall and displayed proudly behind glass.

And right in front of him was the newly awarded quidditch cup that had their team's picture on it and proclaiming Hufflepuff the champions.

"Tada!" Cedric announced joyously.

Harry smiled and laughed along with his friend and peered closer at the moving photo, which had been taken just after they had beaten Gryffindor in the final. Harry could be seen standing next to Cedric and his heart filled with happiness that his name was listed with reserve seeker next to it.

Cedric let him study it for a few more minutes before revealing his second surprise and the real reason that he had brought Harry here, hoping that the younger boy was unaware of what else the room contained.

"There's one more thing, Harry."

Harry's attention was focused on Cedric as he moved around the room before stopping in front of another case that looked like it contained the triumphs and memories of years past.

His heart stopped as he noticed what Cedric was pointing to. It was his father's Quidditch team that were all standing in a similar manner to the photo he had just viewed. It obviously wasn't the first time that he had seen a picture of his dad as Remus and Sirius had shown him many before this. Still, it was unique in that they had both been captured after the same triumph and in similar circumstances.

There was the same camaraderie and excitement in everyone's faces and his dad had such life in his eyes; it drew Harry in and gave him this physical connection to his father that he never quite had before. His mannerisms were almost mirror images of his father's and he now knew where he got his smile from. Though, despite their almost identical facial structure his father's eyes looked off because they weren't a stunning emerald green. He got his eyes from his mom, and he wouldn't trade them for anything.

Cedric was in the corner watching the touching scene unfold before him and it broke his heart just a little that Harry would never get the satisfaction of receiving a hug from his own dad because he too had also won a quidditch cup.

He watched as Harry's finger lovingly traced the frame around his dad's face – who was also listed as that year's Head Boy along with his mom. Cedric was imagining that Harry was having a conversation with both of his parents and describing the year to them. Cedric was doing his best not to become overwhelmed by the situation, he just wanted his friend to know that his parents were here and that his picture would always share a spot next to them inside of Hogwarts.

Reluctantly, Harry turned away from his parent's smiles and venture slowly over to Cedric, his fingers were removing the last vestiges of tears from his cheeks. He wasn't even thinking when he went to hug Cedric and thank him for what he had given Harry. To him, it was more valuable than anything that he owned except the heirlooms his parents had given him.

"Thanks, Cedric. Thank you," he spoke directly into the other boy's chest.

Cedric wrapped his around his friend and held him tightly, doing his best to give Harry that fatherly hug that his own dad had given him after his Quidditch triumph. He rested his chin on Harry's head as he waited for Harry to finish his hug, though by no means was Cedric uncomfortable. He was unconsciously focusing on the smell of summer that began to seep into his nostrils and he thought about the bonfires that he would have at his parents place. He made a mental note to invite Harry and Neville, and perhaps even Draco if his parent's allowed it.

Eventually then made their way back to Hufflepuff and shared a final goodbye before the summer holidays started.

* * *

A few days later, after she had settled back into her own room, Cho brought out the items she had helped herself to and laid them out on her bed to examine her haul.

This had been a particular satisfying year, what with that boon she had embezzled from Brianne's room. She was salivating over some of the obviously pricey mementos and trinkets that were now hers when her attention soon became focused on a delicately wrapped item that she hadn't remembered even grabbing.

She unwrapped it gingerly as if it held the perfect present that she had always wanted and her eyes widened when she realized what it was. Here, in her own hands separated by a thin layer of cloth, was Ravenclaw's missing Diadem. It took all of her willpower not to squeal in delight.

She quickly jumped off her bed and went over to her floor-length mirror and carefully placed it on her head in anticipation of admiring the regalness it would no doubt bestow upon her.

However, the last thing that Cho Chang saw was her reflection's eyes turn blood red and the last thing that she heard was a murderous laugh in her own head.

 **Year one is now complete!**

 **Thanks for reading this and let me know what you think!**


	26. The Dark Lord Rises

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading!

Second, I want to bring Voldemort out to play now. I think it will be slightly strange for his Diadem-self to get a grasp on the world around him and I am going to have him take a step back and prepare for everything. It was interesting trying to imagine how one with plans for domination would behave when awaking in a future that is far different. And this Voldemort will be saner!

As always, I really appreciate the feedback I have gotten and encourage you to tell me what works and doesn't.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; I am so thankful for JKR and all that she did for us. She gave us one of the greatest gifts, and so many people have taken to this site and played brilliantly with her creation. We should have a JKR day and it should be a global holiday!**

* * *

From the moment that Cho Chang placed the Diadem upon her brow, Tom Riddle was able to completely take over her body. It was a very nice vessel for his Horcrux until he could assume his own form.

Her resistance had been pathetic and his mind ravaged through all of her memories and experiences. He took note of as much as he could from her history as he took stock of the new environment around him; he needed to understand where he was for it was clear that the world had changed.

The first thing the Dark Lord was shocked to learn was the year; he wondered how nearly forty years had managed to pass since he had created the Diadem. Everything around him was different.

There was more acceptance of muggles and no one was living in fear. True, his plans for taking over wizarding Britain had only been in the beginning stages in the nineteen fifties - but the second Great War had only been over for a few years and people were still shaken up over the downfall of Grindelwald.

Gellert had influenced muggles from the Axis Powers and swayed them to his cause; the war they started affected the wizarding populace with the advent of new weapons that could be dropped from the skies. It was a perfect distraction for Grindelwald to start his own bid for world dominance. However, he started too big; Europe as a whole was very hard to control at once and he ultimately spread himself too thin. A younger Tom Riddle had studied the rise and fall of this dark lord and would start by taking Britain, a much more reasonable beginning to gain a foothold.

He had taken advantage of the rebuilding period and it had provided the perfect cover for his clandestine meetings as he began to recruit his own army that he planned on calling his Death Eaters.

Something that he longed to return to as soon as possible.

The newly awakened Dark Lord glanced around Cho's room and was thankful that the girl had put the Diadem on after supper, for he could be reasonably sure from her previous memories of the way things went at home that he would not be undisturbed by her parents for the rest of the evening. Which would serve him well as he had work to do and would not have tolerated a disturbance.

The Dark Lord, even in this younger form, had already mastered Occlumency and was busy organizing his mind to assimilate the new information from Cho. And he was not altogether pleased with what he was finding out.

At first, he had nearly cackled in delight as he pulled bits and pieces of his future self's deeds from her mind. He saw the images that were burned into her memories from books she had read or tales her parents had told her detailing what his other part had gone on to accomplish: the death, the destruction, and the overwhelming dominance to the pathetic defenses that Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic hopelessly fought him with. It had seemed that victory should have been his – and he recoiled upon learning of his supposed downfall to Harry James Potter.

'An infant; an infant!' he thought furiously to himself.

He was in a rage and it took every ounce of the willpower that he possessed to not grab Cho's wand and unleash his fury.

The Dark Lord could be patient when he wanted to be _and_ when it suited him. In this instance, he could not afford to act rashly now.

It was only after years of mangling his soul in his zeal for pushing the limits of the darkest arts that his actions had become erratic. But he did not know enough about what had happened because the mind of a thirteen year old could only give him so much information. The Dark Lord needed time to make sense out of the years he had missed. But the more information that he found out, the more questions he had.

For instance, how had a mere babe managed to defeat the most powerful dark wizard since Salazar Slytherin? Where was _that_ Voldemort – shouldn't his Horcruxes have saved him? But no word or whisper of his whereabouts had been heard since that fateful night – and that prospect terrified him. Was something wrong with his other Horcruxes?

'But then how am I here?' he reasoned. 'How do I exist?'

After much deliberation inside his mind he came to the conclusion that either his other part was weak and taking time to recuperate or that a part of him had been truly killed. Either option was extremely hard for him to swallow; the Dark Lord was not weak and he did not like to admit that he had done something wrong. The Horcruxes he had made should have protected him - unless he had misunderstood their utility and purpose. What if the Horcruxes that his younger self had made had simply preserved that part of his soul – much like a restart point should something happen to his main form? At least some part of him could then continue, but he did not like to think that death could take any form of him.

He was above death; he was more powerful than death.

Whatever happened – he knew he would need to be patient now. There was much work that needed to be done and so he would lie low for the time being, even if it meant residing in this insufferable form. Dumbledore, the girl's Headmaster and ever-present thorn in his side, could not be made aware of his return… yet.

The anger still lingered from finding out that a toddler had managed to win against him, but he managed to contain it while he laid out his plans in the middle of the night.

First, and the most important, was that he needed to plan his escape into the real world without alerting anyone that he had returned. This form with its limited knowledge of the world around him was perhaps the most vulnerable he had ever been, aside from his time at the orphanage. It would take time to correct that, and the Dark Lord would not screw this up. He would also need to find a way to dispose of Cho and her family. One because she would simply not continue living after he completed the process of draining her, and the second because he would leave none alive if there was even a chance they knew something. The fewer people that could let slip about his return until he was ready to announce it the better.

A low chuckle emerged from his lips. Despite the delicate situation he that he currently found himself in he was very well aware of how fortuitous being in this particular family was. From the moment that Cho had put the Diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw upon her head his soul had gone into her, and the only thing preventing him from assuming his own body was that it was more convenient to remain in her for the time being. The body of Cho Chang offered protection for him; who would think that within her lived the most powerful dark wizard of all time? She was an average student and her family held no real political or social weight; it was an ideal family in which to hide. At least here he wouldn't have to be extra careful among a light family – or be in the debt of one of his supposed followers. Lord Voldemort did not need or like accepting help from others and preferred to be in no one's debt.

Perhaps he would quietly withdraw the family from their life in wizarding Britain and move. He didn't need to make his torture of them public, and it wouldn't be in his best interest to do so. The current environment was dreadfully boring and it would be much safer than having a horrific murder draw any unwanted attention. No, he would wait out the summer and quietly observe and plan.

Second, he would need to brew some of his own special brand of polyjuice that he had perfected shortly before he had made the Diadem. He had made slight modifications to the brewing process that imbued beneficial characteristics. This need for polyjuice arose when he subsequently found out that Cho's mum was an Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries, someplace he had always dreamed of exploring; he just couldn't pass up the temptation of roaming about.

The Dark Lord would raid her mind thoroughly too before he went. It would give him an idea of things to visit – as well as provide him the skill to imitate her. The addition of her blood into the polyjuice potion would help to imitate her magical signature and would withstand the scrutiny of a passing glance. Anything more and it would fail – because you could never completely fake a magical signature.

The more he thought about it the more it worked into his overall plans. He would drain Cho and assume his form after his potion had finished brewing. Then, he would interrogate the mother after torturing and killing the rest of the family, of course, before finally disposing of her as well. Finally, he would assume the form of Mrs. Miriam Chang and head into the Ministry. It was risky, but he could resign for her in person and that would be much better than an abrupt departure that could leave whispers and conspiracies in its wake.

'So really, if I have to be there at all I might as well take a little detour and explore,' he thought with a Cheshire-like grin that was far too complex and deadly for the innocent features of Cho.

Feeling pleased with what he had managed to come up with, and casting some low level alert wards so as not to be disturbed, the possessed form of Cho Chang lied down for a few hours of sleep.

The next day was spent much in the same fashion; only he had to make an appearance in front of the girl's family. He truly thought it was a miracle that he had the willpower to refrain from killing them, and it was a testament to his more rational mind than his older counterpart had possessed.

The Dark Lord soon found himself in a daily routine. He would spend his mornings making the bare minimum of small talk with the girl's parents, lest he lose focus and act on his sadistic tendencies. After they had left for work, he would _imperio_ the younger brother and force him to sit in a corner and do nothing while he raided the small family library in his quest to uncover the events of the last forty years. Occasionally, he would curse or hex the young boy to let out his pent up frustrations; though, when it got really bad after hearing about some of the changes in the world, he would make his way to the other side of town and kill whomever he could find that would not be missed.

It was only because of these killings that he was able to keep up his charade with the Changs, for he was anxious when the time would come that he could put his plans into action. When it started, he would take great pleasure in their torture and just thinking about what he would do kept him going. Of everything that he had ever endured in his life, this experience was trumped only by his years at that accursed orphanage. It had taken every ounce of willpower and mental fortitude that he had not to massacre the entire lot of them when he returned there each and every summer. Compared to that this was much easier, but he had sworn to himself that never again would he be subjected to the will of another.

After he had found out that he was a wizard and the wonder that he could and would accomplish with magic, he had vowed to rise above everyone. He was one of a kind, and his discovery of his Slytherin inheritance only cemented that belief further in his mind. Lord Voldemort was practically royalty and he had the power to subjugate people to his will, and he never settled for anything less than his best.

He alone, following a handful of others, had achieved immortality. Though, he was beginning to have doubts about the true nature of a Horcrux and his own immortality. It was eating away at him that he would have to wait until he assumed a different form to seek the answers that were always present in his mind. He could hardly afford to chance the places he sought in his current form.

His quest for immortality had brought him to the brink of insanity and was what ultimately led to his downfall that fateful night; for his fractured mind had hastily acted upon hearing a partial prophecy that would bring him the very thing he strove to fight against.

But the Voldemort that emerged from the Diadem and now resided inside the mind and body of Cho Chang did not know this: he was not yet aware of the intricacies that surrounded his future self's past demise. However, this Dark Lord still had his mental faculties about him and he did not want to draw attention to himself just yet, and therefore remained impersonating the dreadfully boring and mind-numbing routine of an idiot girl.

Though, he did add a few new quirks to her habits that were a welcome surprise to her parents. He would just pass off Cho Chang's new affinity for reading and studying as maturing and realizing the importance of her education, should her parents ever question why she was a sudden bookworm. He was gleaning any and all information he could about the current events of the world after being shocked to learn of the Dark Lord's downfall to one Harry James Potter. Still, the Dark Lord didn't spend all of his time pouring through history books or reading every _Daily Prophet_ that he could get his hands on. He spent a lot of his time thinking in Cho's room about the new world that he suddenly found himself in.

Some would say this was beneath the Dark Lord – pretending to be a pubescent child for any amount of time - but he didn't survive his years at Hogwarts under the watchful eye of Albus Dumbledore by acting rash.

Tom Riddle understood his nature within Cho Chang: he was a Horcrux that had been given life inside of another and he only needed to completely siphon off her magical life force to retake his former body at that exact moment when he had made the Horcrux in the first place.

He thought back to his other Horcruxes that he had made or had been planning on making; they were his treasures and he cared for them in ways that he could never explain. They were dear to him, precious even. These heirlooms connected him to the only home he would ever acknowledge and to the only bloodline he cared about.

The Diary: no matter how unwise it may have been to put the first bit of his soul in something so ordinary, it would always be his favorite. It represented his first kill and he remembered it as if it was yesterday. He closed Cho's eyes and delved deep into his mind to where his most important memories were stored.

 _The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets opened noiselessly – aided by magic – in a recently renovated girls bathroom. Every time he ventured in and out of it, Tom Riddle was still amazed that the entrance had gone undiscovered as new piping was installed to reflect innovations in muggle technology._

 _He rightfully assumed that whatever magic had gone into hiding and sealing the entrance still worked and quite possibly had made some modifications as to how the chamber was accessed during the bathroom's remodel; it was a testament to the power of magic and it enthralled the Dark Lord._

 _The fifth year Prefect looked around as he rose from the stairs with the Basilisk, his Basilisk, right behind him._

 _A sudden noise of sniffling brought a malicious smirk to his face._

 _'_ _How convenient,' he thought, with his face becoming flush with excitement as he stalked his prey._

 _His suspicions of the sniveling girl were confirmed when she spoke to him, demanding that he go away._

 _"_ _Go away!" She sobbed to the person intruding on her pity party._

 _"_ _Poor, sweet Myrtle. Today just doesn't seem to be your day." His grin was predatory now, and he moved in for the kill._

 _The crying slowed, briefly, as she took a breath to ask the name of the obviously rude boy hanging out in the girl's lavatory._

 _"_ _Who are you? What are you doing in the girl's bathroom?"_

 _He motioned for the Basilisk to remain at his side, and hissed at it to enjoy the first of many kills._

 _The power that was laced within his voice commanded the snake that had been created by his ancestor. Riddle did not need to be bound to the snake to control it; it was in the snake's blood to do the bidding of the family that birthed it as long as they could speak the language. Only someone fully bound to the snake could have made it immune to Riddle's demands, and Tom would not waste his ability to bond a single time with a snake that followed him anyway._

 _"_ _You are going to be in so much trouble, boy." Sound came from the stall as Myrtle opened the door and turned her head to glare for the last time._

 _"_ _Just wait until I tell the Headmaster…" The sound died in her throat as her gaze fell upon a pair of yellow eyes that captured her soul and took it._

 _The limp form of Myrtle fell to the ground and the rising dark lord took advantage of her death to create his first Horcrux. The process took more out of him than he had realized that it would and he ordered his Basilisk to retreat until he called for it again. Tom needed to regain his strength now and wait until the fallout from her death subsided before he killed again. He would also need to find a way to get his questions answered; now that he had created a Horcrux he needed to know if he could create another. Two would certainly be better than one._

The Dark Lord could still taste the sweet taste of death on his lips and licked them as he returned to the present. It was a shame that Dumbledore was so astute to his true nature and therefore he had not dared to access the chamber again during his time at the school.

But that was the past and would, no had, changed the future, and he would do so again. He had gone onto create two more Horcruxes: the Ring that belonged to the Gaunts, the last descendants of Slytherin's line, had been hidden in their old shack along with some particularly crafty curses while he was the bit of soul that was housed in the Diadem.

He had possessed the means to create two more Horcruxes following the Diadem, both of which he had acquired from Hepzibah Smith. One was a Locket that had belonged to Salazar and the other was a Cup that had been passed down the through line of Helga Hufflepuff.

The Dark Lord wondered if his other part had made more and if he ever succeeded in tracking down something that had belonged to Godric Gryffindor: he had wanted the complete set.

Reminiscing about his Horcruxes brought him to consider the conversation that had occurred during his seventh year with an unlikely mentor of his. He closed his eyes once more and his breathing started to pick up. This was the one conversation that he remained torn about to this day. For a moment he wasn't concerned that he may have gotten something wrong about the true nature of a Horcrux; Slughorn was the one person that knew he knew about Horcruxes, and it unsettled him.

The Dark Lord's eyes moved uncomfortably under his lids at opening up this memory and relieving feelings that he would rather not consider. He had debated for months whether to approach Slughorn and in the end his curiosity won out; it remained the only time he had ever approached another for answers and had let someone in on what he was working on because he had needed help, because he had not fully understood something.

 _"_ _Well, it can't hurt to give you an overview, of course. Just so that you understandd the term. A Horcrux is the word used for an object in which a person has concealed a part of their soul." The memory of Slughorn said in a near whisper._

 _"_ _I don't quite understand how that works, though, sir," his younger self responded with a calculated glint in his eyes. Oh, how he had buttered up the professor with his words and charm to extract the information he sought._

 _Slughorn appeared more nervous now; he was beginning to realize that perhaps he shouldn't have started this conversation at all, what with the nature of the topic. But he continued because it was Tom and he was his favorite student._

 _"_ _Well, you split your soul, you see," he paused again and turned to grab more pineapple before speaking again, "and hide part of it in an object outside the body. Then, even if one's body is attacked or destroyed, one cannot fully die, for part of the soul remains earthbound and undamaged. But of course, existence in such a form…"_

His memory of Slughorn's voice faded and his eyes snapped open in a moment of clarity: he had been blinded by his desire to hear what he had wanted to hear. A Horcrux didn't protect the body or the part of the soul that resided in the body. No, a Horcrux protected that part of the soul that remained safe in whatever object it was placed!

The old books describing some of his favorite curses and spells wouldn't have to be sought out for this purpose anymore, though they would surely be retrieved as soon as he was able. He had the truth now.

"Well, this certainly changes some of my plans now," the girlish voice of Cho said in a creepy, evil manner. The Dark Lord would have to retrace his old steps and find where he had placed the Diary for he already placed the Ring among the hovel that his family had called home. He had ideas about where the Locket and the Cup were – but he wasn't certain – and he didn't even know if his future self had created more. Merlin, there was a chance he would never find them, but he would have to look and it would take him time.

He wanted them close to him, and perhaps he could even rejoin the old splintered fractions of his soul. If they weren't useful to him he would rather become more whole if he could. Was there more about what he had done that he didn't understand? That thought tormented his every waking thought and the Dark Lord found himself more than once employing Occlumency to keep out the voice that made him feel week and stupid. Lord Voldemort was neither of those things.

And besides, retrieving his Horcruxes would give him something to focus on as he prepared for the war he had always wanted – and in a way sort of did – unleash. He would be cautious this time and trust no one; Lord Voldemort could ill-afford more incorrect information at this point. His younger self had been foolish, and he would not repeat those mistakes again.

* * *

It was on an August evening, just days after he had determined it was time to pack up and leave, that he had slowly thrown aside the discarded _Daily Prophet_ that Cho's father subscribed to. The cover had given him a very fresh perspective on what his order of business would be when he returned from his self-imposed exile to fully acclimate to the nineties. Lucius Malfoy, the son of one of his first followers, was parading around Diagon Alley with his family and, according to the paper, the family of Harry Potter. Lucius was almost identical to Abraxas in both his mannerisms and his appearance, and for Lucius' sake, it better have all been for show. He knew a little about the current generation of Malfoys from what he raped from Cho's mind, and it was enough to suggest that Lucius had been very loyal to his future self and managed to smooth talk his way out of punishment after his supposed downfall. It was more than likely that a fair amount of gold also changed hands. That was until Rita Skeeter managed to savage him with her pen nearly a year prior. He would have to deal with Rita as well; she would be made to see what he saw fit to print or else she would be silenced.

The Dark Lord had been surprised that Cho had even been aware of the situation given her rather pathetic academic performance. But she was smart, despite being lazy, and her recollections served him well now.

Very well indeed considering the Malfoy's would be a good place to start when he attempted his second chance at domination – and there was the added boon of Draco being Harry's friend, it seemed. He would have to be careful with his approach, however, and when he returned he was sure this Malfoy would be as faithful and loyal to his cause as his father had been.

Finally, the month-long wait for the polyjuice potion to finish brewing was over and he gleefully held Cho's wand – his own would be retrieved in due time – as he ended her life in the most painless way Lord Voldemort had ever granted someone. Honestly, he didn't even know if she felt anything when he took over her mind and body, let alone when he finally drew the last remaining magical essence that she possessed.

He was in her bedroom and facing the mirror, holding his breath as her body melted away and his became flesh before his eyes. Delighted with the familiar sight of his handsome form he traced his features with his fingertips, exhaling the breath he had been holding in a pleased contentment. The Dark Lord had missed his masculinity as well and he took a few more minutes to make sure everything was where it was supposed to be.

Satisfied with his regained form, he practically skipped towards the door to the hallway and then to the stairs to join his soon-to-be victims for a last meal.

Cho's wand did not sing to him like his yew wand did but it served him well as he quickly incapacitated his targets lounging around the supper table.

He smirked maniacally at the sight of the two parents and the younger brother restrained in their chairs. He sat himself in Cho's seat and helped himself to the simple dinner of rice and steamed vegetables. The Dark Lord basked in the fear and sweat of those before him and took particular delight when the young boy wet himself. It had been far too long since he was treated with the proper respect he was deserved.

'How weak,' he thought to himself at the sight before his eyes.

"Now, I imagine you are wondering to yourselves just who I am and where little Cho has run off to." He said between bites as if he was discussing the weather.

His crimson eyes flashed when he caught sight of the anguish that passed between the adult's.

"She is dead of course – though that is a very boring story that I won't bother you with. Suffice to say she served a great purpose and as her parents you should be proud that she allowed Lord Voldemort to return."

He almost laughed as his words sunk in and any hope that they had held onto was visible as it left them. Even the boy knew his situation was hopeless and he had to shut it up.

" _Avada Kedavra_ ," he salivated as the words rolled off his tongue. He would have his fun with the parents and he enjoyed breaking people at their core.

Tears began to pour down both of their cheeks at the sight of their little boy, lifeless, and still restrained at his chair. His head bent forward due to the lack of neck support, his last expression of fear and shock forever etched on his face.

The Dark Lord reveled in the delightful dinner atmosphere as he finished his meal.

"Now then," he broke the silence as he stood up from the table and dabbed his mouth with a napkin, "I believe we have some things to discuss."

He made his way over to the female and plucked a hair from her head – he didn't want to get carried away with what he had planned. The polyjuice only worked when the hair had come from someone who had been alive when it had been procured.

He caressed her cheek in an apparent loving manner before backhanding her.

Blood poured from her nose and he retrieved a small vial of it for later. It was one of his little contributions to the advancement of Potions: blood helped to stabilize the mixture and extended the duration in which he would be able to search the Department of Mysteries without having to keep taking swigs from a flask that would likely raise questions. Among other things like duplicating her magical essence for a short while.

Tom Riddle took great pleasure in his torture of the father and knew that the wife would be a shell of her former self after seeing or knowing everyone that she cared most for taken from her.

It would make his job of entering her mind easier. Not that he was concerned because he was in fact a Master Legilimens, but having the victim in a broken state would leave every memory unguarded; especially the ones that were held closest and often contained almost impregnable defenses that were just the very sort he wanted to know. There was a reason for why he tortured his victims before getting his information, and this was just one of the many ways in which he excelled in efficiency.

By the time morning came, there was no trace of the Chang family left – and he departed from the place they had called home in his borrowed form. He hurriedly made his way to the Ministry to hand in her resignation with a grand tale about family members being ill abroad. He had already sent in correspondence that morning to Hogwarts notifying the Chang's intent of removing their daughter from school for the same reason. It didn't happen all that often – but it did occur often enough that he was confident it would go unnoticed. Especially after he had made it a point to suffer through play dates with friends and appear Cho-like, and with the mother's resignation in person.

His plan was effortless to execute for someone of his renown and he patiently waited until the end of the day to let Mrs. Chang's boss know. As expected for someone who had been inside her mind and knew all that she possessed on certain topics, words of disappointed at losing someone so talented were heard. He played his part well.

He remained at work a little longer than Mrs. Chang normally would, but it would be appropriate for someone leaving her job to clear up her belongings. And his improved polyjuice would last another few hours in case other Unspeakables were working.

The one thing that he wished he had had more time for was to research some of the charms that prevented some of the articles from being removed unless authorized. He would have killed for a time-turner, quite literally.

His sojourn through was almost complete, and he had taken copious notes on this or that, when he passed the Hall of Prophecy by happenstance.

Divination was a joke as far as he was concerned. He refused to believe that anyone but him could control his own destiny – and besides, there was the wording to consider. It rarely made sense until long after the event in question.

But since he was here – and still very curious at his future self's demise – he humored the notion of seeing if a prophecy existed about himself or that little Potter boy.

He ventured down the many aisles that went alphabetically until he came to the P's – as he was loathe to admit a prophecy involving himself would be labeled under Lord Voldemort or even, Merlin forbid, Tom Riddle. He knew the prophecy would not be labeled under Dark Lord as it wasn't specific enough. From what he knew about these matters, only those whom the prophecy was about could remove them from their resting place, and, therefore, anyone that fancied themselves a dark lord could retrieve it without being harmed.

He froze when he spied that an orb existed that listed Harry Potter and himself, Lord Voldemort, as to whom a prophecy had been made about. He sneered in disgust at the new information – he was loathed to admit that any oracle would dare dictate his future. However, he was also curious, very curious. Here was something he couldn't look away from and no matter how much he didn't want to believe in something so banal.

He just couldn't stop himself, and he hesitantly reached for the orb and his hand lingered just above the glass surface. A small part of him would never accept the notion of fate and it resisted his almost unconscious effort as he gingerly grabbed for the orb.

But his inquisitiveness would not be denied and his fingers enclosed around his prophesized fate.

'How light something so potentially damaging could be,' was his first thought before his ears started to pick up an eerie sound that came from the orb in the palm of his hand.

A silvery figure shimmered into existence in his outstretched hand and the dim light throughout this hall of prophecy seemed to fade until his only source of illumination was a bespectacled and shadowy figure.

He was unable to move as a harsh, but feminine, voice seemed to reverberate throughout his entire being; his eyes widened in alarm as his predicted path became known.

" _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will be protected by a power the Dark Lord knows not... and a Dark Lord will disappear… Years will pass before the war is renewed and the vanquisher meets the Dark Lord in a new form… and ancient magic could tip the scales… to give or take the ultimate gift… and neither will be alone at the end… for either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies._ "

'Well, fuck,' he thought to himself in stunned disbelief.

He didn't know how to process what he had just heard; it would change everything. He would have to rethink his plans now. A prophecy, a prophecy of all things!

An intense chill passed through him and settled in his fingertips that held the glass omen in his grasp. The longer he held onto it the colder the sensation became until he felt as if he was holding a ball of ice. This inane object that dared tell him his fate was infuriating to him. It made him angry, and in his anger at something potentially out of his control, he raised the orb above his head with an intention to obliterate against the cold stone floor.

But then a sudden thought occurred to him, climbing above the rare, emotional thoughts clashing inside his mind. It was a rational and purely logical voice that had kept him out of trouble, for the most part, at Hogwarts.

'It would be foolish to destroy it – what if the act of breaking a prophecy alerts someone?' It was this thought that stilled his hand.

It worried him; it forced him to reconsider his actions. He slowly lowered his arm that held the orb and brought it in front of his face, as if staring at it would reveal more of its secrets and give him time to think.

With the silence that one thought had brought, and the quickly dissipating anger at being presented with this unexpected obstacle, the Dark Lord entertained more of that line of thinking.

'If something has been placed to notify an Unspeakable of a prophecy being destroyed, would something also record a prophecy that had been picked up and listened to?'

He did not like where that thought process concluded – had he acted rashly by even being in this place? Had his curiosity gotten the better of him, again?

Then suddenly, something occurred to him that made everything else pale in comparison. His future actions had suddenly become very clear: 'was this why I went after that Potter?'

His knees started to feel weak at the very thought of what must had led his future self to embark upon his quest to kill Harry Potter if he knew the full wording of the prophecy… and acted anyone. He had never recalled feeling so weak and helpless in that instance – and it disgusted him.

'No,' he thought to himself over and over again. He wouldn't have been so stupid to put himself in any danger, especially considering the wording of the prophecy.

He used his own exceptional memory, enhanced by Occlumency and Legilimency, to review the exact wording of what he had just heard. Perhaps there was something he had missed, however unlikely, the first time.

" _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will be protected by a power the Dark Lord knows not... and a Dark Lord will disappear… Years will pass before the war is renewed and the vanquisher meets the Dark Lord in a new form… and ancient Magic could tip the scales… to give or take the ultimate gift… and neither will be alone at the end… for either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies._ "

It troubled him more so the second time as he took specific note of key phrases and their structuring. He was sure there was no way he would have acted if he had known the entire thing… and that could only mean that he had been aware that a prophecy existed between him and the boy or that he had not heard the entire thing.

The Dark Lord did not like either scenario; he did not like acting without as much information as possible nor did he like the questions that surrounded how could he have heard only a fraction of the prophecy.

'And only certain parts of the prophecy at that,' he thought bitterly to himself. Had he been set up? Rage bubbled beneath his calm exterior; someone would pay for that!

But he calmed himself once more and allowed his cooler half to prevail. He would not figure anything out in this place, and returned his attention to the cause of all of this. Tom did not want to replace the prophecy so that Harry could hear it; he wanted to smash it and prevent anyone else from knowing that it existed. But in the back of his mind, reason again provided another view of things.

'This wouldn't be the only copy that existed. It was made by someone and it was made to someone.' That much he was sure of and smashing this prophecy would do nothing except potentially alert someone about his return as long as those people still lived. And he would find out more about how prophecies were made and recorded in this hall.

His mind was made up: he couldn't chance his return being known anymore than he already had by coming here.

Reluctantly, the prophecy was returned to its perch, and he took one last, long look at his name that was next to Harry's, forever intertwining their lives.

Eventually, he turned his back on his announced fate and exited the hall of prophecy and out of the Ministry. The Dark Lord had much to think about and much to do and he apparated into the night with murder in his heart.

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 **Let me know what you think!**


	27. Changes

**Author's Note:** First, thanks for reading!

My thought process with Voldemort finding out about the prophecy so soon is that I want him to prepare himself more (seeing as how he is technically younger than his canon counterpart) for the upcoming war and I will address Harry being aware of it soon.

I am slightly torn with how much work to put into Harry's summers and his next few years. I don't want to simply do a time jump but I don't want to bore you with all the details either. My whole vision with writing this fanfic was to get Harry and Cedric together, but I am unable to simply do anything it appears without setting it up in a realistic manner. I will most likely end up doing a bit of both; I will skip some months and focus on specific events or little details so it doesn't seem like Harry suddenly becomes a formidable wizard overnight. I don't want him to be God-like but I trust that he would be well ahead of his peers because of the work that he has put in. Please let me know if I am not doing that premise justice.

 **Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; I am so thankful for JKR and all that she did for us. She gave us one of the greatest gifts, and so many people have taken to this site and played brilliantly with her creation. We should have a JKR day and it should be a global holiday!**

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"Better, Harry. Remember, it may not be as important to force someone out of your mind as it is to focus on controlling what they see or don't see."

Snape had an approving look on his face as he gazed at the sweaty brow of his rapidly advancing pupil. Harry had made tremendous progress with Occlumency over the summer since he wasn't concentrating on using his wand, allowing his magical core to recover from the school year. The older a student got, the less fatigue was felt at the end of the year until it didn't become an issue when they reached magical maturity.

Harry slumped down in the chair, breathing heavily; at times, he put so much energy into successfully shielding his mind from Severus' formidable talents at Legilimency that he sometimes forgot to breath.

"I think you just need a little longer before you could keep out a sustained attack on your mind. Of course, a master Legilimens would be able to breach your defenses but in time I expect you to be able to keep them out as well."

Snape reached out to pat Harry on the shoulder. He was truly proud of the progress that Harry had made, even if he was going a little easy on him.

"I've said this before, Harry, you have come very far in your abilities and I think you will be a master Occlumens very soon. I'm sure you have already noticed the improved mental abilities that come along with it?"

Harry nodded tiredly. He may not have been exerting the same type of energy that it took to cast with his wand, but in some ways, what he was doing now was more tiring.

"My memory has certainly gotten better, Professor." Harry supplied.

"Severus will do, Harry, outside of the school year," Snape informed Harry for the umpteenth time since the beginning of the summer.

"Sorry, sir." Harry countered.

He just found it extremely difficult to think of Snape as anything but being his favorite Professor.

"I always had an above average ability to recall things, but now," he looked out the window to the park across the street from the study where he had faced the first of Voldemort's Horcruxes a year ago, "now, I find that if I take time each night to sort my memories from that day that I hardly fail to remember something."

Harry wasn't suggesting that he had an eidetic memory because he couldn't recall everything that he had read or seen, but if he concentrated on a few details and events of importance – those he found very easy to recall.

Snape was glad, very glad. He knew the mental faculties that the Dark Lord possessed, even in his unstable state from making so many Horcruxes. Harry had to be prepared for what he was going to be up against, and it wasn't even his vow that had necessitated his action; he was growing to care for Lily's child partly because he was her child and partly because of how much of himself he saw in the boy. Harry had this thirst for knowledge and Snape found himself looking forward to seeing what Harry could absorb. Very few things needed to be explained to him a second time, and even when he asked for clarification on something it oftentimes led to further discussion. It awoke the love of learning within him as well and it was apparent to those that knew Snape well, which wasn't many, that Harry was his favorite student.

That and he wanted Harry to survive and thought it was imperative that he be aware of the prophecy and be able to deal with it as soon as possible. 'And Harry would be ready for it very soon,' he thought with a mixture of pride and sadness.

Harry was soon dismissed from his lesson and headed to freshen up while Severus departed through the floo and back to Hogwarts, where he had work to finish in preparation for the student's arrival in a week's time.

Harry could hardly believe that he was about to start his second year studying Magic at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

As the warm water cascaded around him in the shower, he found himself thinking back to the point he was at just a year ago when he was just learning about all of this and discovering that magic was real.

Harry had been a loner before Hogwarts, always used to accomplishing things on his own. In some ways, he was still very much that person, but in others... it was very easy to see how he had changed.

And it was only right that he had changed as his circumstances had; how could he not have grown after learning what he had from Minerva and Kreacher that first week? And then everything else that followed? Hell, he had bonded to a snake that could and had killed someone's soul!

So he had adapted; he changed with what was going on around him. He had taken a chance and opened himself up to people - though that wasn't the whole story either. Looking back, his best friends were all a product of accidental happenstance like running into Cedric or random acts of kindness like the note Neville had written him after the truth about Sirius had become known.

They had changed him, they had made him more open to others and he had flourished at Hogwarts. Which was why Harry was very much anticipating his return to the castle in a few days.

With his shower finished, Harry quickly dried himself off and changed into comfortable clothes for dinner with Remus and Sirius, while his mind still lingered on the upcoming year.

Of course, he had read all of his course books already and felt confident that he could perform most of the magic within them. But his summer hadn't been all studying. Sure, Harry had continued his lessons with Walburga and Orion about politics and the like, and still devoted an hour a day to ridding the world of Voldemort – though he was finding himself overwhelmed by the different directions he could take _that_ in. So far, he had simply focused on Runes because he found them interesting and he was curious and eager to decipher the markings in what he now referred to as 'the lair.'

The only other thing he spent time on was learning as much about the history of the wizarding world that he could, and Walburga and Orion were instrumental in that regard as well. Remus and Sirius had even been able to fill in some of the gaps that he had.

Harry had also made time to see his friends as often as he could when both his and their guardians allowed. He would have gone crazy if he had been physically separated from them for the entirety of the summer and his only form of communication with them was through owl post, which they kept up a few times each week.

As he made his way down to dinner, his thoughts drifted to Draco. He had only seen him once this summer and they had only been able to exchange a few letters. Harry was well aware that it was because of Lucius that he was prevented from seeing his friend, as Draco had warned him at the end of term.

 _"_ _I will write when I can manage but I expect it will be few and far between. I'm not certain what he would do if he found out we were actually friends as opposed to me pretending to be yours." Draco said as he looked out over the students heading to the train station._

 _"_ _Our friendship here has been confined to the library and 'that place'," Draco said suggestively._

 _"_ _That is all that it can be, for now" Draco finished with a torn look in his eyes._

 _Harry had understood that Draco wasn't ashamed of being friends with him, but recognized that there were very adult circumstances at play beyond their control and that they had to be careful._

 _"_ _You will be alright, won't you… Draco?" Harry countered._

 _"_ _And you know I'm here and my house is always open to you." He stated more than asked._

 _Draco sighed and looked off in the distance again, watching the students move leisurely, jealous of the lack of real troubles over their heads._

 _"_ _I know, Harry. But … there may not be much that I can do – or anyone for that matter. You know what he is capable of. I'm not sure that there is any place for me to hide that he couldn't get to me. Besides, I can't put that on you and Remus and Sirius."_

 _"_ _Nonsense, Draco!" Harry had whispered furiously as they were not completely by themselves._

 _"_ _We are friends, okay? I want you to promise me that you will come to me if anything bad happens or is about to happen?"_

 _Harry's green eyes had displayed his deep sincerity and concern for his friend, and it was the only thing that made Draco agree in the end._

 _"_ _I know, Harry. I am truly grateful for you, and Cedric, and hell even Longbottom. I will come to you if it gets bad, Harry. I promise."_

 _The train sounded in the distance, giving its warning of departure._

 _"_ _See ya, Harry" Draco said as he turned and headed towards Hogsmead Station with those who had lagged behind because they had left packing to the last minute._

The memory had weighed on him all summer. Now that he had friends he was very protective of them and didn't like the thought that they may be hurting or suffering. Harry had been thankful that, so far, Draco had not needed help and hoped that Lucius had not set him to any more tasks like the one he had given him at Christmas. He also hoped that Draco was not suffering abuse because he thought he could handle it or that it wasn't that severe.

When he had met Draco in Diagon Alley a week ago he had kept a watchful eye on his friend for signs that he was hiding abuse or had not kept his promise, but he couldn't detect anything. Kaa had even snuck along with them and hadn't smelled anything indicating otherwise. Lucius, on the other hand, had practically reeked of dark and dangerous magic, and it was coming off of him in waves. It had unsettled Kaa and reminded him of that dreadful locket, though it was very faint and probably similar because of their evil nature.

Since he had spent all of his time on his way to dinner thinking about other things, he had not even noticed that he had been standing next to his chair with a blank expression for a few minutes.

Remus and Sirius traded a brief glance between them. It was obvious that something was on Harry's mind.

"Everything alright, Harry?" Remus asked with a hint of concern on his face.

Sirius watched Harry intently as he seemed to realize where he was and snap out of it.

"What? Oh, sorry." Harry met their gaze and took his seat, the delightful smell of shepherd's pie wafting through the house now.

"I have just been thinking about Draco." He shrugged his shoulders and turned his gaze away from Sirius.

Anger and mistrust flashed through Sirius' eyes; he was still unhappy about Harry's choice of friends and the whole spectacle that had been meeting one in particular last week in Diagon Alley.

So far Sirius had managed to keep his thoughts to himself, and to Remus who had tried to show a different side of the young Malfoy.

The sudden slamming of a fist on the table jolted the comfortable dinner setting, ruining the mood and causing Harry to gasp.

Harry looked slightly bemused at Sirius countenance; he could only guess as to what he was angry about.

"It's a Malfoy, Harry. It is most certainly a ploy of some kind."

"Easy Sirius," Remus tried to placate his angry co-parent and friend of many years."

"No – I didn't come back from Azkaban having been betrayed by someone I thought was a friend," he pointed harshly at Harry, "who also led to your parent's deaths."

Sirius instantly regretted his outburst and recoiled his hands and covered his face with them.

A wetness overtook Harry's green eyes at the outburst and the harsh way that the memories of his parent's death were thrown in his face.

"You think I don't know that," Harry said softly, tears now spilling over his cheeks.

"You think I never thought about that in the beginning or didn't see the way Lucius wanted to A _vada Kedavra_ the Grangers in Diagon Alley?"

Remus and Sirius were slightly taken aback by the seriousness in which Harry had spoken and neither could find it in them to comment on his brazen mention of an Unforgivable Curse.

Kaa poked his out of Harry's sleeve and slithered onto the table so that he could fully see everything.

"Harry…" Sirius started, unsure of how to finish what he started.

"No, Sirius, you don't have to explain. I get it." All of the rage from his previous reply was gone. Kaa's simple action of making his presence known had given him perspective; their bond was strong and often went unseen and unnoticed by others.

"You don't know the whole story, and I do understand your concern."

Harry looked at Sirius softer now, and with understanding.

"You're worried he is my Pettigrew; I get it. Really, it was the first thought I had when he approached me in the library. Neville and I both were suspicious."

Sirius and Remus shared another look between them: it was exactly the fear that Sirius had, and in lesser part by Remus.

Harry was torn; he wanted to assuage his guardians' fears but was this his story to tell? He didn't want to betray Draco's confidence.

He thought for a moment as he scooped some dinner unto his plate and the others quickly followed suite at Kreacher's behest that the food was getting cold.

 _"_ _They deserve to know, Harry. They are your guardians and should be made aware of certain things. Maybe they can help Draco or at least become aware in case their help is needed?"_

Harry looked to Kaa and let his words sink in; he was right, of course.

"You can't say anything to anyone – promise me?" He looked at both of them, in turn, with a pointed expression.

He continued when they nodded, all of their focus and attention was on Harry now.

"True, Draco did approach us on orders from his father at the beginning of last year. I think Rita Skeeter's article on Lucius had something to do with it. Anyways, after the Christmas holiday, Draco returned different than from when he had left."

Remus nodded along. At the time, he hadn't been certain – Malfoy's were very good at wearing masks – but something did seem off about him now that he thought about it. And he had noticed Severus watching him more intently during mealtimes.

"We approached Draco about it one night, with Cedric, and he told us what happened over break. For us, it was enough to trust him, and I do."

Harry wasn't going to mention what they had discovered, not yet anyways.

"And what did he tell you, Harry" Remus asked with his mouth to his wine glass as Sirius looked on with a growing knot in his stomach. He was a Black; he had some idea of what growing up in a Malfoy's house had been like.

Harry looked down at his food that remained untouched, "he was forced to cast the _Cruiciatus Curse_ on a Muggle that his father had kidnapped – and his father cast it on him until he got it right."

Silence. There was no shocked sounds after that revelation, just quiet.

"We all felt for him, saw the truth in his eyes and heard the regret in his voice for his part in torturing someone. He even offered to take a vow of his intent to us, though we didn't think it was necessary."

The mention of a vow peeked the curiosity of the two men and brought them out of their thoughts. They had been stunned by Harry's simple statement that revealed the horrors within the Malfoy household.

Sirius was the first to speak. "Harry," but was soon unsure of where to even begin. How did one deal with abuse of a child in Draco's particular situation?

"He is my friend and I am certain that he is mine – Kaa is also certain and he revealed his true form to Draco."

At this, Harry looked at Remus and an understanding soon passed between them. For Harry to have shown Draco Kaa and for him to have Kaa's blessing ameliorated a great deal of his concern.

Sirius had only heard about the incident with the Locket and with his parents and hadn't seen it with his own eyes – though the thought that Kaa would never let anyone who meant Harry harm near him also made him feel better about the situation.

"He isn't like Lucius, not in most ways. Sure, him and Hermione aren't exactly the best of friends but it improved a lot over the year… and he told me about Lucius wanting us to hang out over the summer for a staged photo in the _Daily Prophet_."

That hit a nerve within Sirius. "Are you certain he isn't playing you, Harry?"

He lowered his wine glass and stared at his Godson. "I think it is a testament to how far he is willing to go to in his ploy to repair the damage that Rita had caused to be in the presence of a Muggle for a photo. But Harry, what if this isn't all an act?"

Though Sirius could be comforted by Kaa's implied consent of the friendship, and his sympathy at what Draco had gone through at home, the betrayal of Pettigrew weighed too heavily on his mind. He didn't want Harry to experience that level of hurt.

"And if, if, Draco is playing us, however slim that might be, we aren't truly unaware because we are discussing it. I get the stakes that are involved." Harry slumped back in his chair, tired.

Sirius wasn't convinced, not completely; though some of his problem was realizing that Harry wasn't an ordinary twelve year old and it wasn't just because of his intelligence or maturity; Harry had and would face horrors that most could scarcely imagine.

"How are you so old for someone so young?" Sirius asked in an offhanded manner, resigning himself to the budding friendship for the time being. He realized that there wasn't anything that he could do about it at this particular moment.

Remus and Sirius both watched as a weight seemed to settle on the boy's shoulders and Sirius cursed softly under his breath. How inadvertently callous could he be?

"Harry, I'm sorry – that was rather stupid of me to say." He thought about going over to Harry and sitting next to him, and then did so.

Harry shifted in his chair to face Sirius, whose hand was now on his shoulder.

"It's okay, Sirius. I understand. I sometimes feel like I am handling things like you guys would when at other times I have no idea what I am supposed to be doing."

Sirius responded by squeezing his shoulder with a sort of reassurance.

"Sometimes I forget what you've gone through, pup. Sometimes I would rather hope that you could have a carefree existence and not deal with things most will never know."

That was the truth and Harry took it from Sirius at face value. Sirius had suffered through Azkaban and generally just wanted him to be happy. And Remus, Harry looked over to him and gave him a half-smile, to which Remus responded by joining Harry and Sirius on the other side of the table.

'Remus has been through horrors as well,' Harry thought with a sadness that was oddly comforting. Each person in this room had experienced some of the very worst things in life, but they were still here and still living. That, more than anything, gave Harry the strength he needed at times when the thought of the future was overwhelming to him.

"But I'm not alone," Harry piped up. "I have you guys and I have Cedric, and Hermione, and Neville," he looked at Sirius with a slight grin, "and Draco," he finished.

Sirius snorted lightly.

They stayed that way for a few minutes. The adults were thinking about the various things that had gone on at Diagon Alley: how Augusta had watched Lucius intently underneath that truly memorable vulture hat with her hand on her wand, ready to pounce at a moments notice; or how the Diggorys were slightly ignorant of the tension that bubbled beneath the surface and were just delighted to be in such esteemed company. Remus had thoughts of how Harry had pestered him for his schoolbooks at the beginning of the summer and couldn't stop the smirk on his face, nor the shake of his head as he knew that Harry had already gone through them.

So naturally, Harry had picked some books that he informed them were 'for just a bit of light reading,' never mind that some were far thicker than any school text. He never tired of how much of Lily and James he saw in Harry.

Eventually they all returned to their seats and finished the meal, which Kreacher had managed to somehow keep warm, over more appropriate and lighthearted dinner conversation. Sirius was soon narrating, with impersonations and hand waving, stories of their youth to Harry, who was absorbing every word.

With their stomachs full and their eyes heavy they each headed to their separate bedrooms. Harry lingered by the window in his room for a moment and gazed out at the backyard. He smiled when he saw the shadow where he knew the garden that he and Sirius had started was. Since the only magic besides Occlumency that Harry was more or less allowed to practice this summer was Potions, he had managed to convince Sirius to let him start his own garden. Sirius had been reluctant at first, but Harry had only needed to mention Lily before the old marauder had caved.

He placed Kaa in his little nest, which again was just above where Harry slept, and got under a light blanket. He went to sleep that night anticipating his departure for school and he was looking forward to taking the train since it meant that he got to spend more time with his friends. That and Remus had duties supervising the train at the beginning of the year. This way, he didn't have to later in the year.

And in no time, Harry began to dream…

 _Familiar hands brushed against his knuckles; they were strong, yet soft and bigger than his own, and he knew whom they belonged to. Harry could feel his heartbeat quicken as those hands moved to cup his face gently. Even if he were colorblind he would be able to tell whose eyes he was gazing at: not quite silver with hints of gray and just the faintest bit of green thrown in._

 _Cedric tried to tame a piece of Harry's hair and soon became frustrated that it could not be placed correctly. Harry started fidgeting the longer that Cedric was concentrating on doing the impossible, and soon was making faces that Cedric found adorably cute considering his consternation at being unable to beat a strand of wayward hair._

 _"_ _Cedric, you know it won't stay." Harry whined as if he was being tortured, when he couldn't think of anyplace that he would rather be._

 _"_ _It will, just wait and see," Cedric said with a determined expression._

 _Harry began to squirm in Cedric's arms more now and Cedric was forced to abandon his attempt at styling and wrapped both arms around Harry to keep him still._

 _"_ _I am never letting you go, Harry" Cedric responded with a mischievous smirk and a raised eyebrow._

 _Harry quit his struggle and moved fully into Cedric's embrace, where his head came right up to Cedric's chin. Harry felt when Cedric inhaled his scent and he focused on the sensations that were shooting up his spine as Cedric rubbed small circles into his back._

 _"_ _Harry," Cedric exhaled in a rich and deep voice._

 _Harry moved his head back briefly and titled it to look up at Cedric's handsome face._

 _"_ _Yes?" He replied as he began to realize that the only thing he could see was Cedric and there was nothing around them, but it didn't bother him. It felt natural._

 _Harry then felt a tingle that he had never felt before and became acutely aware of how the only thing he could feel was Cedric's body pressed against his._

 _This new sensation became more pronounced as Cedric moved his lips closer to Harry's until they met and there was no space left between their bodies; Harry had never felt such intense feelings before._

 _It was only a few seconds into the kiss before an overwhelming sensation erupted throughout his body and he could no longer sense Cedric's presence, and he felt this tug in his navel as if his body was about to explode._

Harry opened his eyes suddenly in the dark room and darted them around in alarm before he noticed a wet sensation in his pajama bottoms. It took him a few seconds to mentally work out what must have occurred, and he was glad that the first time had happened when he was not at Hogwarts.

In the back of his mind he had been waiting for this as he knew from his Muggle education more or less when 'the change' would begin, but he had been trying to fight his growing attraction to Cedric that had really picked up at the end of last year. He knew that they had an atypical relationship for two males, but didn't want to get his hopes up. Harry really did value his friendship and didn't want to jeopardize it in any way.

He threw the covers off of him and made his way to the bathroom, feeling slightly embarrassed though he knew it was an irrational feeling; it was his body going through a biological change and it was normal. Though, Harry wasn't looking forward to what the change in hormones would be like and he hoped it wasn't too hard to deal with or changed him too much.

A few minutes in the bathroom and Harry emerged with fresh pajama bottoms and settled into bed once more. This time, however, he did not fall asleep quickly as his mind was still processing what had just happened, and he showed up to breakfast the next day a little later than usual. Of course, Sirius and Remus paid it no mind as they figured Harry had been up reading or doing something else.

Coincidently, after breakfast Sirius and Remus had decided on having 'the talk' with Harry. They had been pushing it off for the entire summer but with his approaching second year of Hogwarts starting in less than a week, they couldn't delay it anymore.

Harry sensed that something was off during breakfast as Remus and Sirius had been fidgeting more so than usual – even Kaa had picked up on it. Though, Harry supposed that he could also be hyperaware of things on account of what he had gone through last night and perhaps he was reading too deeply into things.

However, the moment they asked him to step into the study his suspicions were confirmed and he knew he wasn't imagining it.

Everyone was sitting down and each of them was nervous as hell: the adults for not wanting to do this and Harry for not knowing what to think. Kaa was in the chair next to Harry and was looking more and more confused as he stared at each of them in quick succession.

"Harry," Remus began, "Sirius and I, well, uh, we…" He was beyond nervous and this was perhaps one of the most awkward things he had ever done.

"You see, Harry," Sirius tried, "there comes a time in every little witch or wizards life when certain things happen as their body goes through changes as they begin to grow into adults." Even Sirius was surprised with what had just come out of his mouth.

Harry held his hand up, he couldn't take much more of this.

"I know about puberty you guys, we learned about it in primary school." Harry said matter-of-factly.

Sirius and Remus nodded as the uncomfortable expressions that had been on their faces started to morph into relief. They were not looking forward to discussing the topic as a whole, but were rather glad that they didn't have to describe the specific changes to Harry.

There was some more awkward silence, and Harry used it to fill Kaa in on the ridiculousness that was happening and his hope that it ended soon.

"That's great, Harry," Remus blurted out a few moments later, "but there are still some things we want to talk about, if that's okay?"

Harry nodded; just wishing this whole thing would be over with very soon. The longer he sat there the more he thought about his dream last night and how coincidental it was that they had chosen today to talk with him about this.

"But magical people are different than muggles in some ways, and as such, you may or may not be aware of them."

Harry nodded while looking down at the ground.

"And we want you to know we love you no matter what, and support you no matter what. Do you understand that?"

Harry nodded – boy were they dragging this out, even if they were being supportive.

Sirius was just as uncomfortable as anyone else but he had less reservations about blurting things out; if anything he wanting this over more so than anyone else.

"Whether you are into girls or guys, want to date, don't want to date, or are dating someone – well, we have this little pamphlet here with more information. It has some charms you may want to learn for when the time comes and let us know if you have any questions – though we think it will be a while before you have any."

Harry thought that was a lot of information to get in twenty seconds but appreciated how quickly Sirius had gotten everything out.

"So, is that it?" Harry asked hopefully.

Sirius and Remus nodded their heads in unison; both had noticed the brief look of relief that had flashed through Harry's eyes at the mention of liking guys being okay with them. They had succeeded in their minds without coming right out and asking Harry if he was gay; the most important thing to them was that Harry was happy and safe.

Harry paused at the door, and held up the pamphlet awkwardly.

"Uh, thanks. I think," he said before quickly shutting the door and resting his body against it in utter relief that it was over. He wasn't even sure what he had said when he had departed because he was just so thankful to be out of there. He loved Remus and Sirius and was glad that they cared about him and didn't care about whom he was attracted to, but that had to have been the most uncomfortable conversation he had ever had.

Inside, Sirius and Remus were both helping themselves to a very generous, early morning drink. They too were glad that that was over and agreed whole-heartedly that it was a necessary evil that had to be done; it was something that neither ever expected to have to deal with until recently. But Harry was their charge and his needs came first.

Harry spent the rest of the day in his room and had Kreacher bring his meals – he just wasn't up to facing the others again so soon. Little did he know that Sirius and Remus had more or less expected this response and had Kreacher inform them of Harry's eating plans.

The next day was better, although there was still a slight unease to everyone that made the situation more tense than it needed to be. They each talked more than usual about non-consequential things as they attempted to overcompensate for the day before and show that everything was back to normal.

Things slowly returned to normal over the next few days and Remus, Sirius, and Harry sat down to an early meal on the eve of his return to Hogwarts. Harry and Sirius were particularly sad that they would have to go without each other's company while he was at school and there was a sadness that surrounded both of them.

It was near the end of the meal when Sirius placed a wrapped present besides Harry's dessert.

"What's this, Sirius?" Harry asked, surprised.

"You've already made up for every holiday and birthday you missed with that Nimbus 2001 you gave me for my birthday!"

Sirius chuckled and then smiled in a way that told Harry that whatever this was hadn't cost him anything.

Curious, Harry started to unwrap the box before him and knew at once that he would never have been able to guess what was inside.

It was a mirror, one of those old-timey things that had a handle and would have looked more appropriate if he was constantly brushing his hair or looking at his face.

Sirius had half of a grin on his face as he watched Harry look over the gift with a confused look as he thought back to the many times that he and James had used these communication devices during detentions at Hogwarts.

"Uh, Sirius, a mirror, wow, I don't know what to say."

Remus snorted at Harry's decorum; he was usually more composed than this.

Sirius reached down and brought an identical mirror to rest before him and then looked at Harry pointedly and then turned his attention to the mirror.

"Harry Potter," he spoke in a clear and steady voice.

Harry's curiosity at what his godfather was doing was soon replaced with awe as the mirror grew warm in his hands and he caught sight of Sirius staring back at him through the mirror. He looked at Sirius, looked at mirror-Sirius, and kept looking back and forth between the two of them with a most priceless expression on his face that sent Sirius and Remus into a fit of giggles.

"Bloody hell," Harry was finally able to articulate his thoughts. It was a fantastic magical object.

"You're welcome, Harry."

"Thank you, Sirius. This is great – now it won't seem like we are that far apart at all."

Harry went over and hugged his godfather tightly, and it was reciprocated in kind.

Remus' heart was fuller now than it had been in many years as he was part of a family unit that gelled together quite nicely and really made the best out of an awful and horrible string of events.

The reverie was soon broken up by the realization from Remus that it was going to be an early morning since they had to be at the train station, though if they got up a little earlier, they could still have one final breakfast as usual.

The earlier bedtime was more for the adults that it was for Harry, seeing as how he really wasn't tired and he had never needed that much sleep to function normally. Six hours was all that he tended to need to feel well-rested, and so he just spent the extra time awake in his room.

Harry had been concentrating harder on his animagus training this summer now that he had the free time in which to dedicate a serious attempt at it. He found that after he had used Occlumency to process the day's events each night, his mind was very open and relaxed to the idea of changing into an animal.

He knew that Minnie had said it was dangerous to attempt this feet without supervision, but that had never really been a major concern for Harry. He was convinced that as along as he followed the instructions from the book he had secretly purchased from Flourish and Blotts that he would be fine.

And he was making progress according to the text – which was a testament to how much Occlumency training that he had had and how advanced he was for his age.

The steps to becoming an Animagus, however, were much, much easier on paper that in reality. The first step was being able to clear your mind while the second step simply consisted of being able to feel your magic flow throughout your entire body and _feel_ every body part and subtle nuance. The third step tended to be the hardest for people because it involved finding your core and recognizing what traits defined you best, and then translating that over to which animal you were most like. The problem with this step was that you couldn't choose what animal nor could you change the qualities that best defined you at your core. This was often the step that people gave up on, whether because they weren't honest with themselves or they didn't like the animal they could potentially change into and so stopped trying.

Once you had your animal, all you had to do was imagine your entire body taking on those characteristics and becoming the animal. Again, this was easier said than done, but for individuals with a strong mental constitution it was simply a matter of putting in the effort to make the transition second nature and routine.

After going through the events of the day, and finally banishing the memory of having the talk with Remus and Sirius to the far corners of his mind, Harry was sitting on the floor in the corner of his room. He had also struggled slightly with where to place that dream of Cedric, and the following events. He was torn; he had enjoyed it and when he thought of Cedric a happiness and comfort seemed to bubble just underneath the surface of his skin and it just felt right, but he really wanted Cedric to be in his life in some form. He didn't really know what to think and it was one of the reasons he had put so much time and effort into Occlumency this summer so that he could think about something else. If he wasn't careful, all of his thoughts tended to drift back to him.

It took Harry about half an hour to clear his mind enough where he could get to his core. Harry was more curious than anything to see what made him tick, and in some ways, it benefited him that he was doing this while he was younger and he didn't have to contend with some of the prejudices that clouded older individuals with accepting who they were.

He had gotten to this stage many times before and had only glimpsed some of his innate attributes. Tonight was the first time that he had finally broken through and his raw, naked form. He discovered that he liked to explore and observe: that was his defining characteristic. Harry wanted to see everything from multiple points of view and do so without constraint; he was content with being by himself and didn't mind the solitude, though he also didn't mind being with others.

Then, quite naturally in his mind as he had no contention with what defined him, Harry saw the raven inside his mind and knew at once that his animal made sense; it was why he felt so comfortable in the air and moved as if he had been doing it his entire life. He felt this overwhelming feeling of joy and acceptance course through him and he couldn't help himself as he thought about the feeling of flying again and the air rushing past him, guiding his course through the air currents.

Harry was so intently focusing on that feeling of the wind against his skin that he soon forgot about being on a broom and thought, for just a moment, what it would be like to fly. Suddenly, this prickly sensation spread over all of his body and he felt different, although not exactly uncomfortable. He found that it was hard to think about anything else and it caused him to open his eyes and he was shocked at what he saw when he brought his hands up.

He jumped up and ran to the floor-length mirror and his jaw dropped at what was staring back at him: feathers. He was covered in thin black feathers from head to toe.

"Arghhhhhh!" he gasped quite loudly.

Kaa opened his eyes and hissed from his nest.

" _Harry, what happened_?" The snake blinked many times as he thought his vision had failed him.

Before he could respond or gain his ability to respond, Remus and Sirius burst through his door with their wands drawn. The sudden commotion caused Harry to jump unexpectedly and it had the effect of causing his feathers to molt, which sent Sirius to the ground, in a near fatal hilarity, gasping for breath as black feathers fell to the ground around Harry. Remus had to use the wall for support as he was trying with every ounce of his willpower not to laugh as well, and reminding himself that this was a serious matter and that Harry would likely need help to morph his feathers back into his normal appearance.

"Harry…. Harry, are you okay?" Remus was finally able to ask.

"Do I look okay, Remus?" He glared menacingly at Sirius who was still rolling around on the floor.

" _Homorphus_ " Remus intoned softly, with a slight roll of his eyes.

The blue light hit Harry and the feathers began to recede into his skin and soon he stood before them, back to normal, in his pajamas. Harry took the opportunity to appreciate his returned form.

By this point, Sirius had gotten himself together and picked himself up off the floor.

"Harry, are you okay? In all seriousness?" Remus remembered back to his first transformation and how witnessing his friend's first attempts had made the whole thing easier on him. He was touched that they had gone through that just to be with him and they had all gotten a good laugh when James had sprouted antlers for the first time or Sirius's tail pushed through his shorts.

Remus went over to him and patted him on the shoulder, feeling slightly guilty for laughing at first – but it wasn't everyday, even for a wizard, that you saw someone covered in feathers.

"Harry – it happens to us all. My first time, I had a tail pop out of my pants – and your dad, well he took the cake. Antlers, huge," he gestured with his hands and also went over to Harry, "on his head. Why, he couldn't make it out of bed because he was stuck."

Harry felt better at hearing these things; he was slightly embarrassed about letting the magic get the better of him.

"Thanks, though it was rather alarming to have feathers all of a sudden."

Sirius patted him on the head, "looked good on you, pup." He smirked.

"Sirius," Harry rolled his eyes.

"Harry, in all seriousness this is rather advanced magic. But I suppose it has gotten to the point where you could succeed quite soon – and congratulations on finding your form -" he smiled genuinely, "-but it is rather dangerous to try this by yourself."

Harry was about to protest that Sirius and his father had done the same thing.

Remus raised his hand in a placating gesture.

"I know; Sirius and your dad did it as well. But they had each other, and were a little older."

He looked to Sirius as if communicating something, and Sirius nodded in response.

"We aren't angry, nor will we stop you, but we ask that you do this under supervision from now on. In fact, I will approach Minerva about this tomorrow, and perhaps she will agree to give you private instruction on this."

A true smile took over Harry's face.

"Really?" he eyes were wide with anticipation.

They both nodded at him.

"Just keep this to yourself, for now?" Sirius asked.

"It could be a great advantage for you someday and it is rather unusual – okay, unheard of – for one so young to master this skill."

Harry nodded. "Okay, I can do that. Thanks."

"Sure. So what kind of bird are you going to be?" Remus asked. "Did you see the whole form?"

All of the tension from the prior few moments went away as Harry thought back to discovering something that just seemed right, as if he had found another part of himself.

"A raven," he replied with a far-off expression on his face. "I get to be a raven."

 **Thanks for reading; let me know what you think!**


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